


Fate/Gender Reversal

by ElvenQueen18



Series: F/GR-verse [1]
Category: Fate/stay night (Anime 2006), Fate/stay night (Visual Novel)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Canon Rewrite, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, F/M, Gilgamesh is an Even Bigger Creep, Kuzuki/Caster is present but not a focus, Multiple Endings, Shinji is a Creep, Written in 2013
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-06
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:13:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 112,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27420250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElvenQueen18/pseuds/ElvenQueen18
Summary: A teenage girl desires to become a Champion of Justice, and a young King desires to undo what he feels is his greatest mistake. Shira Emiya has her life turned upside down when she ends up summoning a handsome knight who calls himself Saber.
Relationships: Emiya Shirou & Fujimura Taiga, Emiya Shirou & Heroic Spirit EMIYA | Archer, Emiya Shirou & Matou Sakura, Emiya Shirou & Ryuudou Issei, Emiya Shirou & Tohsaka Rin, Emiya Shirou/Artoria Pendragon | Saber, Heroic Spirit EMIYA | Archer/Artoria Pendragon | Saber (one-sided; minor), Illyasviel von Einzbern & Emiya Shirou
Series: F/GR-verse [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2003320
Comments: 6
Kudos: 13





	1. An Almost Ordinary Day

_Fire. That was all that could be seen: orange, hellish flames that greedily consumed everything and everyone in their path. The once lively, peaceful suburb of Fuyuki City was now nothing but a burning wasteland._

_How many people were crying out for help? How many people knew their deaths were upon them?_

_How many people knew they wouldn't be saved?_

_A little girl heard these cries, but she kept running. Soot covered her face and clothes, and tears were streaming freely down her face. Whether she was crying because of the scorching, suffocating heat, because she was utterly terrified—of the fire, of the screams of the dying all around her, of the certainty of her own death—or because of both, she didn't know nor care._

_Dawn arrived as the fire finally died out. The girl came to a halt and collapsed to the ground, desperately dragging what fresh air there was into her damaged lungs._

_Her breathing slowed as it started to rain. She didn't try to get up; what was the point? Everyone—including the girl's parents—had died in that fire._

_Everyone was dead._

Everyone _was_ dead _._

_The girl didn't cry; she didn't have any more tears to shed. She merely closed her eyes and waited for death to claim her._

_That was when a miracle occurred._

_The girl's eyes opened to the sound of footsteps. A dark-haired man was standing over her. Her heartbeat suddenly quickened as hope filled her; was this man going to save her, just when she'd given up?_

_She closed her eyes again, too exhausted to stay conscious._

_And within the darkness, a clear image of a sword appeared._

* * *

"Senpai? Emiya-senpai?"

Brown eyes slowly blinked awake at the sound of a soft, feminine voice. Shira Emiya looked up sleepily to find a violet-haired girl standing in the doorway of the storage shed.

"Good morning, Sakura," Shira greeted, smiling and stifling a yawn as she got up from the floor and stretched the stiffness out of her body. "Did I oversleep?"

Sakura shook her head. "No, there's still plenty of time. But you're usually already awake when I get here."

Shira spared a glance at a broken VCR player. "I must've dozed off while trying to fix that thing," she mused, brushing a strand of red hair away from her face. She chuckled slightly. "I've _got_ to stop doing that."

She turned her gaze back to Sakura. "So, what should I do about breakfast?"

"I can take care of it," Sakura assured her.

"Sakura, you don't—"

The younger girl interrupted Shira's protests. "You don't have to rush around so much. I'll make breakfast while you get yourself ready." A small, amused smile appeared on Sakura's face. "Especially since Ms. Fujimura is about to arrive."

"Okay, you win," Shira relented, taking a few seconds to look over herself. She was wearing the oldest shirt she owned and a pair of equally old sweatpants, and she'd rather not have Taiga Fujimura, her high school English teacher as well as her unofficial guardian ever since her adopted father died five years ago, lecture her on her currently unkempt appearance this early in the morning.

Kiritsugu Emiya had been the one who saved Shira after that fire a decade ago. He had taken her to the hospital, and once the doctors confirmed she would live, Kiritsugu had offered her a choice: either to stay at an orphanage or to live with him as his daughter. Needless to say, little Shira couldn't agree fast enough to be adopted by her rescuer, and the Emiya estate had been her home ever since.

At present, Shira went about her daily routine. She did twenty sit-ups in the dojo, then headed to the bathroom to take a shower, put on her school uniform, brush her teeth, and wash her face. By the time she left the bathroom for the dining room, brushing her long, still damp hair, she could hear a familiar voice shouting.

"SHIRA! HURRY UP! I'M STARVING!"

Sure enough, Shira entered the dining room to find an expectant-looking Taiga already sitting at the table. Sakura was also at the table, pouring tea for the three of them.

"About time," Taiga said. "I was gonna start eating without you."

"You know what they say about patience being a virtue, Fuji-nee," Shira teasingly informed her.

Breakfast passed normally enough, with Taiga (loudly) carrying most of the conversation; once the meal was over, she'd taken a glance at the clock and rushed out of the estate, shrieking something about having tests to grade. That left Shira and Sakura to take care of the breakfast dishes.

Shira was in the middle of washing her plate with a soapy rag when the news report on TV caught her attention.

"All those who were exposed to the gas leak remain unconscious and in critical condition," the female reporter was saying. "The cause of the gas leak remains unknown, but officials state..."

"It's weird how there have been so many gas leaks in New Town lately," Shira commented as the report continued. _Gas equipment can't be_ that _faulty..._ she thought.

Sakura hummed a bit, but otherwise made no reply as Shira handed her the plate for rinsing.

Several minutes later, the girls had left the estate and were on their way to school, walking in companionable silence. As they stopped at a street corner, waiting until it was safe to cross, three police cars sped by, sirens blaring.

"What do you think is going on, Senpai?" Sakura asked.

"I have no idea." Shira paused slightly, her brow furrowed in thought as she stared at the passing cars. "I'm sure it's nothing," she added, her face smoothing.

Shira hardly heard Sakura voicing her agreement; she wondered if she'd only said that because she was trying to convince herself that nothing was going on.

* * *

"Thanks for trying to help," Issei Ryudou said, looking up from a small stack of papers to address Shira.

Shira, who was rummaging around in her toolbox, looked up as well. "No problem, Issei."

"Academic clubs are at the bottom of the funding list," the student council president complained. "The athletic clubs seem to manage quite well, but we can't even get a heater to last us through the winter."

Shira half listened to her friend as she left her seat to closely inspect the aforementioned heater.

"Can you fix it?" Issei asked presently.

"Yeah," Shira replied. "It's probably an electric shortage. It should make it through the rest of the year if I switch it out."

"Thank you, Emiya." Issei smiled as he adjusted his glasses. "You're a woman both capable and reliable."

"Um, thanks. I think." Shira went on after a slight pause. "Well, anyway, I'll need to really concentrate in order to fix this. You mind leaving the room for a bit?"

"Ah, a delicate procedure." Issei stood up, gathering his papers. "I won't get in your way, then."

And with that, Issei left the council room, quietly shutting the door behind him.

Shira put her hand on the heater, unable to suppress a smile. Issei wasn't entirely wrong about the procedure being delicate.

After all, the way she fixed things wasn't exactly normal.

She closed her eyes, concentrating only on her sense of touch.

_Trace, on._

With that simple, silent incantation, an image of the inside of the heater appeared in Shira's head. In seconds, she had deduced that there were two places where the wire was about to break. She figured that a little electrical tape could be used to patch up the power cord.

Her eyes opened, and the mental image disappeared.

Being able to visualize structures, to intuitively comprehend the makeup of an object, was quite useful when one was an unofficial janitor of the school. But as far as being a full-fledged magus went, Shira had very little magical talent.

 _If a magic school exists,_ she thought a bit sardonically, _I'd be laughed out of it before the day was through._

Shira spent the next few minutes working on the old heater before leaving the council room to catch up with Issei and head on to class.

* * *

"And in case you haven't heard, there are some new campus hours you'll have to follow," Taiga was saying towards the end of homeroom. "They'll be closing the campus at six o'clock, so if you're in a club, be sure to wrap it up early!"

"What?!" a male student exclaimed, standing up. "Ms. Taiga, the archery club never finishes by six!"

"Mr. Gotou," Taiga began, all previous cheerfulness out of her voice.

The boy flinched under her glare.

"If you call me by my first name _one more time_ , it's _really_ gonna make me mad!"

 _And now the Tiger awakens. Again,_ Shira thought nervously as the boy stammered out an apology.

Once he looked sufficiently cowed, Taiga abruptly went back to her cheery, perky mood.

"Alrighty, class, that wraps it up for homeroom today! I'll see you all for third-period English!"

Taiga left the classroom just as the next teacher, Souichirou Kuzuki, arrived.

* * *

The next couple of periods seemed to go by in a blur for Shira. Before long, it was time for lunch, which she often spent with Issei in the council room. Today was no different.

"Hey, did you happen to hear about the incident at Second Avenue this morning?" Issei asked after a moment of silence.

Shira nearly choked on her rice ball. Well, _that_ was an interesting conversation starter.

"I just saw some police cars on the way to school," she suddenly remembered. "What was it all about?"

"There was a murder," Issei said simply.

A slight gasp escaped from Shira's throat, and she felt her stomach drop.

"I don't know all the details, but it sounds as though it may have been a robbery. The victims were a family of four, but what's odd about it is the weapon that was used to kill them. They believe it was some kind of long blade."

Shira stared out into space as Issei spoke. Someone had killed four people? Four _innocent_ people?

 _What sick lunatic would...?_ she thought, grabbing a fistful of her skirt.

"First we have gas leaks plaguing the city," Issei was now saying, "and now we have to deal with random homicides. I suppose closing the school up early does make sense."

He had barely finished when Shira shoved her lunch away and stood up.

"So have they caught the guy who did it?" she asked angrily. "Or is he still out there?"

"No, they haven't caught him," Issei replied. "Apparently, they don't have a single clue to go off of."

Shira looked down. _Four people, dead. Wasn't there anything anyone could've done? That_ _I_ _could've—_

"Emiya." Issei's calm voice interrupted her from her thoughts. "You look a little pale."

 _Do I?_ Shira tried to smile.

"I'm fine," she said. "This news just has me a little rattled, that's all."

"I guess this isn't really a proper conversation for a meal, is it?" Issei asked rhetorically, sounding apologetic.

But even as they went on to another topic, Shira found that she'd lost her appetite.

* * *

A few hours later, school was over, and Shira wasted no time in going to Copenhagen, the liquor store where she worked part-time. According to the owner, other people were supposed to come help restock the wine supply, but Shira was the only one who showed up. She insisted on staying longer to do more than her share of work, and by the time she left Copenhagen, night had fallen.

As Shira walked home, she couldn't help noticing how empty and silent the streets were. There were usually people walking or driving about at this time, going home from either work or school, but tonight, she seemed to be the only one outside.

Honestly, it was kind of eerie, but Shira supposed it was to be expected, what with the gas leaks, robberies, and homicides that had been happening lately.

Without warning, an image of a sword appeared in Shira's mind.

She abruptly stopped walking, startled. She'd been seeing that same sword in her dreams for about a month now, a shining white blade with a blue and gold hilt. If there was a reason why she kept dreaming about a sword, she didn't know it.

Shira shook her head to rid herself of her thoughts. She was about to continue on when she saw someone walking towards her. It was a young girl, looking to be about twelve years old, with long white hair and softly giggling as if she didn't have a care in the world.

As the girl got closer, Shira was tempted to call out to her, to ask what she was doing out this late. _And_ without any adult supervision.

Shira couldn't help wondering where this little girl's parents were.

But before she could even open her mouth to say anything, the white-haired girl spoke.

"You'd better hurry up and summon somebody, miss, or you're gonna die."

 _What?!_ Shira thought, turning around sharply to stare at the girl as the latter proceeded down the street. To hear a statement like that from a young girl was shocking enough, but what was perhaps even more shocking was how the girl had said it. She didn't sound cautious, afraid, angry, or even serious.

She sounded completely pleasant.

Shira slowly shook her head again, then decided to put the strange girl out of her mind.

* * *

When Shira finally got home and joined Taiga and Sakura for dinner, she was greeted with Taiga's scolding.

"You shouldn't be coming home so late. You're still a student, you know!"

"You make it sound like I went to a party," Shira said as she filled her plate with food. "I was working."

"And was this just _your_ work, or someone else's, too?" Taiga asked.

"So what if it was?" Shira snapped, knowing where this conversation was going. "It helps someone else out, doesn't it?"

Taiga sighed as if trying to reason with a particularly stubborn child. "Always living for others, huh? Did your dad put these notions in your head?"

Sakura chose this moment to speak. "Ms. Fujimura, is it true that she's always been like this?"

Shira busied herself with eating her salad as Taiga answered.

"Yep; she's had a hero complex for as long as I've known her, always trying to save someone. She once told me about how she was gonna be 'a Champion of Justice' when she grew up. I keep telling her she needs to give up on that and go find a boyfriend, but—"

"Oh, no," Shira cut Taiga off firmly, setting down her chopsticks, "we are _not_ going there."

"Now, Shira, don't be like that," Taiga chided. "You're a perfectly lovely girl; I'm sure boys would love to go out with you."

 _And she says_ I'm _naïve,_ Shira thought. Aloud, she let out a short, dry laugh. "No guy in his right mind would fall for me when Tohsaka's going to the same school."

Rin Tohsaka—classically good-looking, star student, and every teenage boy's fantasy. She had all the boys at school practically eating out of the palm of her hand (every boy except Issei, for a reason that he never got around to really explaining to Shira).

"It is true that a lot of boys like Tohsaka-senpai," Sakura admitted.

"What about Mr. Ryudou?" Taiga suggested. "You do spend a lot of time with him."

Shira made a face at that. "Fuji-nee, _please_. Issei's like a brother. Besides, he's training to be a monk. Mention the word 'date' to him and I bet he'd break out into hives or something."

"Well, that doesn't mean you have to be single forever!"

"Sakura, would you please pass the soy sauce?" Shira asked, pointedly ignoring Taiga.

* * *

After dinner, Taiga had left to walk Sakura home, and Shira went to the storage shed. There was one last thing she needed to do before going to bed for the night: magic training.

 _First things first._ Shira took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and tried to empty her mind of every thought, solely concentrating on creating a magic circuit within her body.

"Trace, on."

At once, it felt as though a hot metal rod was slowly being inserted into her spine. Shira let out a few painful grunts, struggling to maintain the connection. Eventually—and she didn't know exactly how long—the process of creating an artificial magic circuit was complete.

With that done, Shira knelt on the floor and picked up a metal pipe.

"Trace, on." The magic circuit activated, mana flowing through.

"Basic structure, established. Components, determined. Basic structure, altered."

The mana began to flow into the pipe.

"Components, reinfor— _ahh_!"

The magic circuit disappeared, and with it the mana Shira was using to strengthen the pipe. Said pipe fell to the ground with a clatter as she doubled over, gasping for air.

 _I failed. As usual,_ she thought once she'd caught her breath. _I'll never be like Dad at this rate._

Two years after she'd been adopted, Kiritsugu had revealed to her that he was a magus, and it was only after a lot of begging and pleading that he agreed to teach her magic. Her lack of talent meant that she was only capable of learning basic spells, namely structural grasping and reinforcement magic. Her father always told her that he didn't mind if she gave up her training, but Shira persisted, no matter how frustrating it got.

"Magic should never be used for your own benefit," Kiritsugu once said. "It should only be used to help others."

Yes, it should. Shira had made a promise to her father that she would save lives just as he had saved hers. And if she could just get better at magecraft, then maybe someday, she could be a hero like he had been.

As she wiped the sweat off her brow, she failed to notice a carved circle glowing faintly on the floor.


	2. A Fateful Meeting

The next morning began just like any other. Shira got ready for school, ate breakfast with Taiga and Sakura, and washed the dishes once the meal was over. It was when Shira and Sakura were walking to school that the first strange thing that day occurred.

"You know, Sakura," Shira began as the girls approached the school building, "I appreciate you coming by to help me with chores, but you could take weekends off. Don't you have friends you want to hang out with?"

"Oh, it's really no problem," Sakura said. "I don't feel the need to go out just because it's the weekend. But if I did want to meet someone or had something personal to do, I'd do it."

"Okay; I just don't want you putting yourself out on my account."

"Senpai!" Sakura suddenly exclaimed. "Your hand's bleeding."

"Huh?" Shira abruptly stopped walking, confused. She looked down at her left hand; sure enough, there was a long, thin cut along the back of her hand. Tiny droplets of blood dripped down in between her index and middle fingers.

"That's weird," she said, more to herself than to Sakura. "I don't remember cutting myself last night." She shrugged. "Maybe I did and I just don't remember."

Shira looked up at Sakura, who looked concerned.

"Don't worry, it's just a scratch." She smiled reassuringly. "It doesn't hurt at all."

That seemed to be enough for Sakura. "All right, as long as you're not hurt."

"Morning, Emiya."

Shira and Sakura turned to see Ayako Mitsuzuri walking up to them with a small grin.

"Good morning, Mitsuzuri," Shira greeted.

"I was wondering where you were yesterday," Ayako told her. "Figured you'd want to sit in on the archery club meeting."

"I had to work," Shira explained.

"Sorry, Senpai," Sakura said, giving a slight bow to Ayako, "but I should be getting to class."

"See you later, then." After Sakura had left, Ayako turned to Shira, her initial smile fading. "Hey, Emiya, could you do me a huge favor?"

"Sure, what is it?" Shira asked.

"Keeping an eye on Shinji for me."

"You mean Matou?" The redhead frowned. Shinji Matou was Sakura's older brother, and although Shira had been going to school with him for years, he was no friend of hers. "What's he done now?"

"Well, he's just been kinda out of control lately," Ayako said as she and Shira began to walk into the school building. "I take my eye off of him for one second and he acts like he owns the place. Just the other day, he made the first years, who had never touched a bow before, do target practice in front of every girl in the club. He embarrassed them until they hit their mark."

By now, the two girls had made it to the locker room, Shira shaking her head in disgust while Ayako opened her locker. "What a jerk," she said as she began opening her own locker. "Where were you when this was happening? You're team captain; you could've gotten him to stop."

"Hey, it's not like I let it happen." Ayako grabbed her bag and shut her locker door with a little more force than was necessary. "I'm doing a dozen things at once and I can't be in the dojo and out at the archery range at the same time."

The brunette scowled. "And whether I try to talk to Shinji about anything, the little creep just up and leaves. I'm telling you, one day I'm gonna strangle him!"

Shira hummed in thought, closing her locker after getting her books. "Still, it sounds like something must've ticked Matou off pretty good. I mean, I'd like to think that even he would know the difference between tough instructing methods and public humiliation."

"Well, I heard he got shot down pretty hard by Rin Tohsaka yesterday," Ayako admitted as she and Shira left the locker room.

"Really?" Shira asked.

Ayako nodded. "If it's one thing that boy has plenty of, it's pride. From what I heard, Tohsaka took all that pride and smashed it into bits."

Shira spoke again after a momentary pause. "If you really want me to, Mitsuzuri, I'll try to talk to Matou."

What she didn't say was that trying to talk to Shinji was like trying to talk to a brick wall.

* * *

"If you're gonna harass me about something, Emiya, can you at least wait until a reasonable hour?" Shinji grumbled shortly after Shira had approached him in the hallway.

Shira was tempted to inform him that she wasn't here for the pleasure of his company, but she restrained herself. Starting an argument with Shinji was not something she wanted to deal with right now.

"I'm not trying to harass you about anything," she said patiently. "I just wanted to know what was going on with the archery club."

Shinji scoffed. "You quit the club ages ago; why the hell do you care now?" He didn't give Shira a chance to answer as his usual arrogant smirk crossed his face. "But now that I'm vice captain, we're bound to win."

"Sounds great," Shira replied a bit shortly. Then, feeling as though she might as well be more polite, she added, "Let me know if you need help with anything. If I remember correctly, you were never good at fixing your own equipment."

Shinji dismissed her with a wave of his hand. "Unlike you, I'm not into that blue-collared labor stuff. I'll give you a holler next time something comes up."

 _Translation: I wouldn't ask you for help if my life depended on it. How nice of you, Matou,_ Shira thought sarcastically as she watched him leave.

* * *

The rest of the school day passed in a normal fashion. After classes were over, Shira spent a couple of hours with Issei in the student council room, trying to fix an ancient TV set. It was nearly sunset by the time she left the school building.

"Hey, Emiya! What are you still doing here?"

Shira forced a tight-lipped smile on her face as she walked across the schoolyard to the archery dojo, where Shinji was standing with a group of girls.

The smile Shinji was wearing was downright condescending. "Must be nice to have so much free time that you think you can just goof off all afternoon."

"Well, if you must know, Matou, I was helping Issei with a TV for the student council," Shira replied, managing to keep her voice civil.

"Well, aren't you a little lapdog?" Shinji gestured towards the girls behind him. "That said, we have a favor to ask of you. See, the archery dojo is in serious need of a cleanup. I'd do it myself, but," he let out an exaggerated sigh, "I'm just swamped. You mind taking care of it for me?"

The girls gasped in surprise.

"Shinji!"

"But Ms. Fujimura told _you_ to clean it up."

"But if I did that," Shinji told the second girl who had spoken, "we wouldn't make it to the restaurant before it closes. Who cares if she does it for me? It still gets cleaned."

"Yeah," the girl reluctantly admitted, "but doesn't she think that's rude?"

"Oh, you don't care, do ya?" Shinji asked Shira.

Honestly, she had half a mind to tell him to go do his own damn work and go straight home. _How Sakura got stuck with this guy as her brother, I'll never understand,_ she thought.

Even so, she figured the best thing to do was to go along with it. She _did_ tell Shinji to ask for her help if she was needed, after all.

"It's no problem," Shira said. "I had nothing planned, anyway."

As Shinji left with his giggling groupies, Shira went inside the dojo.

_If I'm gonna do this, I might as well do it right._

* * *

It was well over an hour later when Shira finished washing the dojo's floor, cleaning the bows, and fixing the bowstrings. All in all, she felt it hadn't been a waste of time, despite Shinji throwing his work onto her; it was actually kind of fun to be cleaning a place she used to spend her time in.

Shira was in the middle of wringing a rag out when she heard loud clanging sounds coming from outside.

 _What could that be?_ she wondered as she stood up, focusing on the sounds.

Was that _metal_ she was hearing...?

Deciding to investigate, Shira headed outside the dojo. What she saw out in the schoolyard caused her heart to skip several beats.

A man in blue and a woman in red were fighting, their weapons—a lance for the man, twin swords for the woman—clashing and clanging as they met blow for blow.

 _What the hell is going on?_ Shira thought as she watched. Somehow, she didn't think these people were from a circus.

The two combatants struck at each other, but with each opening that was exploited by one, the other was sure to block and counterattack. Whether it was an attack, a block, or even a dodge, the man and the woman moved with a speed that Shira could barely follow.

It was a speed that could only be called inhuman.

Shira's shock at what she was seeing turned into horror when she suddenly remembered the conversation she had with Issei yesterday.

_"There was a murder. ... What's odd about it is the weapon that was used to kill them. They believe it was some kind of long blade."_

She needed to run; she needed to get out of here. The man and woman seemed intent on killing each other, but what if they spotted her?

 _They'd kill me,_ Shira thought faintly. _They'd kill me; oh, God, they'd_ kill _me! Run, you idiot, RUN!_

Her thoughts were becoming more frantic by the second. However, even with her every instinct _screaming_ at her to run, that this was something she shouldn't see, her body remained rooted to the spot. Her eyes continued to focus on the battle in almost morbid fascination.

The man's lance clashed again with one of the woman's swords, the sound of metal on metal piercing the night air.

A fearful gasp escaped from Shira's throat.

"Who's there?" The man took his eyes off of his opponent...

...And looked directly at her.

At last, Shira turned around and put all of her energy into running as fast as she could, the spearman chasing after her.

She ran into the school building, down a flight of stairs, and through several hallways. It felt as though at least a quarter of an hour had passed before she slowed down, unable to run much further.

Panting heavily, Shira leaned against a wall. She couldn't hear anything except for the thudding of her heart. She was safe from her pursuer...for the moment, anyway.

"What the hell?" she muttered. "What the _hell_?"

Those three words summed the whole thing up nicely. Just who _were_ those people (if they could even be called that)? Why were they trying to hack each other to pieces?

Shira's breath rate was starting to get back to normal. But before she could straighten up and resume running, the blue-clad spearman appeared in front of her as if from nowhere.

"Yo," he drawled, his red eyes glinting maliciously.

Shira flinched away with a yelp.

"You're pretty fast, little girl," the man remarked. He spoke as casually as though he was talking about the weather, and that was probably what scared Shira the most.

"But you can't run forever. And now that you've seen us," he lifted up his red lance, "you have to die," he finished as he stabbed the frozen, terrified girl in the chest.

Shira heard a small, pained squeak, belatedly realizing that it came from her. She slumped forward as the man roughly pulled his lance from her body, falling face first onto the floor after it was out.

She dimly heard the man's footsteps as he left. She coughed up some blood, feeling her body going numb as her heart began to slow.

The world around her was getting darker. She couldn't focus on anything.

 _I'm dying..._ The thought came to Shira sluggishly.

She'd been close to death once before, after that fire ten years ago. Back then, though, Kiritsugu had saved her, and there wasn't anyone to save her this time.

 _I'm dying...without ever having saved anyone..._ She didn't even have the strength to shed a tear at the fact that she'd failed in her promise to her father.

Everything went black a second later.

* * *

Shira did not know long she remained in that darkness. For a time, all she heard was her faint heartbeat, struggling against the odds to stay alive. Then she heard footsteps, followed by a voice or two, but it was as though those sounds were from a long distance.

"Reproduce and replace all damaged organs, including the heart."

Warm heat seemed to cover her like a blanket.

_What's going on...? Is someone there...?_

The heat faded, and Shira was left with the darkness.

When she came to, the first thing she noticed was the high ceiling of the school's hallway. The second thing she noticed was the sharp pain in her chest.

Grunting, Shira slowly sat up and gingerly touched the place where she'd been stabbed, earning a blood-stained hand in the process.

 _I'm...alive?_ she thought, slightly stunned. But she had been dying; how on Earth—?!

Shira let her eyes wander to the floor, where she saw a small ruby glittering from a chain.

 _Someone_ was _here,_ she realized. _Someone was here and they brought me back to life._

After a few seconds of thought, Shira picked up the ruby, deciding to give it back to whoever saved her if she ever met them. Of course, it would help to know _who_ that person was, but still.

Finally, she stood up and left the school for home, her head full of thoughts of the bizarre events that had transpired.

* * *

The estate was dark when Shira arrived. There was a note from Sakura in the dining room, saying she had gone home herself, but the redhead only gave it the briefest of glances. She sat down on the floor and took a few deep breaths, feeling exhausted even as the pain in her chest seemed to subside at last.

Whoever the lancer and swordswoman were, Shira had decided that they couldn't have been human. Were they ghosts, then? But that didn't seem right; even from the distance where Shira had watched them, they looked solid enough.

A ringing from the bell hung from the ceiling broke her from her thoughts. Immediately, Shira tried to stand up, her senses on alert; in the next second, she sank to her knees as pain from her wound spiked again.

 _He's here!_ she thought, gritting her teeth. There was an invisible barrier around the estate; it wasn't much, but it at least let her know when a stranger entered the property.

No doubt her killer followed her home so he could finish the job.

 _Get a weapon, get a weapon!_ Shira ordered to herself, searching the room for something she could use.

She quickly spied a rolled-up poster that Taiga had brought the other night (it was a military poster made from sheet metal; Taiga had meant for it to be a joke, although Shira had been unamused) and grabbed it. It wasn't the greatest weapon in the world, but she would have to make do.

There was no way she'd let that bastard kill her again so easily.

"Trace, on."

Her natural magic circuits, as few as they were, hummed with mana. Shira rushed through the spell to reinforce the metal poster, skipping a few steps in the process. It didn't have to be perfect; it just needed to be enough to hold her ground until she either escaped (that was a likely scenario) or could force her opponent to retreat (that...wasn't so likely). In any case, she didn't have a second to spare.

And it was just as well, because as soon as she completed the spell, the lancer appeared, seemingly coming straight through the ceiling. He had his weapon in both hands, preparing to strike.

Shira just barely avoided the blow by rolling forward. Glaring, she quickly stood up to face the man, her own reinforced weapon at the ready.

"You know," the lancer began conversationally, "I was being nice by giving you a painless way to die. But," his face darkened, "now that you're making me kill the same person in one day, you've pissed me off!"

Shira remained silent; the glare she still sported was more than enough to convey that the feeling was mutual.

"This time," the man readied his lance, "be a good girl and _stay dead_!"

The lance was thrust, but Shira managed to block it with the poster. Unfortunately, while the lance did not pierce her chest again, it did graze her arm.

The man's red eyes seemed to light up in interest as Shira painfully hissed and clutched at her injured arm.

"Huh; this is a surprise," he commented. "It would explain why you're still breathing even after I skewered your heart. There's a faint sense of magical power coming from you." He smirked devilishly. "I suppose I might as well have some fun."

Again, the lance was thrust. Again, Shira blocked it, but only just. Her opponent kept coming at her, and it was all she could do to defend herself; even if she had any time, she doubted she could land even the weakest of hits.

After a couple of minutes of this pattern of striking and blocking, the lancer knocked Shira into the sliding doors, and she landed in a heap in the hall. As she struggled to get to her feet, she looked up in time to see the man throwing his lance at her. In her mad rush to get out of the way, she jumped backward through the window, glass shattering as she got outside.

Shira did not stop to see if the lancer would follow her, but ran in the direction of the storage shed, hoping beyond hope that she could reach it and find a better weapon before he could—

She hadn't even completed that thought when the lancer suddenly caught up to her, roundhouse kicking her and sending her flying into the wall of the shed. She landed bodily on the ground.

She fought to contain any screams that wanted to escape from her mouth as she struggled to stand despite the injuries she sustained.

"Face it, girl," the man said, "it's over."

As he thrust his lance again, Shira took a step back. The next strike he sent resulted in her being thrown inside the storage shed. When she tried to get back up, the lancer approached her and kneeled down to her level.

"Just give up." He smiled mockingly.

A mixture of stubbornness and fury filled Shira's veins.

"NO!"

She shot to her feet and recklessly attempted to beat the man over the head with her battered poster. He calmly used his lance to smash her weapon into pieces as if it was only origami paper.

"Checkmate," he declared. "I gotta hand it to you; you've got spunk for a little girl. From what you've showed me, it's possible that you were the seventh."

"You mind stringing together words that actually make sense?" Shira snapped.

The lancer chuckled. "At this point, you don't need to know."

Right behind Shira, the carved circle that had glowed faintly the night before began to glow more brightly. But Shira wasn't paying attention to that. All she cared about was getting out of this alive.

 _I was given a second chance to live,_ she thought fiercely. _I'm not going to die here. I don't_ want _to die here!_

As if in answer to her thoughts, an image of that shining sword appeared in Shira's head, and her left hand suddenly burned as though a hot iron had been placed on it.

In the next instant, both Shira and the lancer were distracted by the column of white light that shot upward from the circle.

 _What...?_ Shira squinted her eyes against the brightness. The light slowly faded to reveal an armored figure. The figure shot forward in between Shira and the lancer, causing the former to be pushed to the ground and the latter to be driven out of the shed.

Shira blinked rapidly, wondering what was going on this time. But as she lifted her gaze to this new figure, her breath found itself lost in her throat.

It was a boy, looking only to be about her age or younger, dressed in a long-sleeved blue shirt and black leggings underneath silver armor. His skin was pale, his hair was light blond, and his blue-green eyes looked as though they could see right through her. The moonlight coming in from the shed's open door illuminated him, making him look as though he was not of this world.

At that moment, Shira forgot about the lancer, forgot about her wounds, forgot about all the craziness that had happened tonight. All she could comprehend was this boy standing in front of her.

He was the most beautiful person she had ever seen.

When he opened his mouth to speak, his voice—majestic and powerful, yet also stoic—was just as beautiful to Shira as his appearance. "I am Saber, your Servant. I have come forth in response to your summons. I ask of you: Are you my Master?"

It took a few seconds for what he actually said to register in Shira's brain.

"What?" she asked, finally coming to her senses. "Your...Master?" She yelped slightly as she felt her left hand burn.

"Yes, you summoned me," the boy answered calmly, "and as a Saber, I heeded your call. Your orders, Master?"

Instead of replying, Shira looked down at her still burning hand. Three red marks—was it blood?—were etched into her skin. She rubbed her right hand over her left to try to stop the burning.

"My sword will be at your side from here on in," the boy continued. "From this moment henceforth, whatever fate awaits you awaits me. Now, our contract is complete."

"Just what are you—" Shira began.

But the boy suddenly stiffened, turned around, and rushed out of the shed.

"Hey! Get back here!" Shira yelled, getting up and running after him.


	3. Questions and Answers

Saber wasted no time in engaging the Lancer Servant in battle.

Lancer made to strike Saber, but the knight parried the blow of the lance with his invisible sword. Saber proceeded to knock away all of Lancer's following attacks, sparks flying as steel met steel.

The older man was backed away by the force of his opponent's blows. The two combatants leapt into the air and charged at each other, swinging their weapons. The force of the attack knocked them back at opposite ends of the yard. Lancer charged forward with a yell, thrusting his spear, but Saber parried the attacks, once again forcing Lancer to back away.

Screaming out a battle cry, Saber lifted up his sword, now engulfed in light, and swung it down. Lancer just barely blocked it.

"What are you, a coward?" Lancer demanded. "Why not stop hiding behind that weapon and reveal it!"

Saber's answer was to charge forward with a few more strikes of his still invisible sword, the light having faded. Lancer blocked these attacks as well and jumped backward out of Saber's range, a few tiny nicks now in the red spear.

The young knight regarded the spearman coolly. "Come now, Lancer. Quit now and you will disgrace your own kind. If you won't come to me, then I'll come to you."

"Let me just ask one question. Your Noble Phantasm, it's a sword, isn't it?"

Saber was not put off his guard for even an instant. A cocky little smirk tugged at his lips. "My, my, you should never assume. It could be a sword, but it could just as easily be an axe or even a bow."

Lancer scoffed. "Don't get cheeky, _Saber_." He crouched down, pointing the tip of his spear to the ground. "This is just our first encounter. Whaddya say we give it a rest and call it a draw?"

"Sorry," Saber replied, not sounding sorry at all, "but I prefer to finish what I start."

"My only objective tonight was to gather information." As Lancer spoke, his spear began to glow, the air around it suddenly charged with mana. "I had no intention of tangling with a Servant. However, if you're going to insist on this—"

The spearman charged forward, his weapon now glowing brightly.

"GAE—" Lancer thrust his spear...at Saber's feet.

Saber turned and jumped out of the way—

"—BOLG!"

But in the next second, the knight was sent reeling backward as the spear was stabbed into his chest, dangerously close to his heart.

Saber doubled over, pressing a hand to the bleeding wound.

 _Was that a hex?_ he wondered. The lance had been aimed at his feet, yet, as impossible as it sounded, it had pierced his chest. _No, perhaps a cause-effect reversal._

"So," Lancer commented, "you dodged my Gae Bolg's fatal blow."

Saber's gaze snapped back to Lancer, momentarily ignoring his wound (which had already begun to heal). "What did you say? Does this mean that you are the Hound of Ulster?"

He did not wait for an answer. "Gae Bolg is enchanted to breach any defense. The spear targets its enemy's heart, then moves on its own to avoid anything that impedes its target." Saber straightened up. "And that spear is only handled by the Irish hero Cúchulainn."

Lancer's smile was slightly bitter. "I hate that. Every time I use that attack, I run the risk of exposing myself. I guess there is such a thing as being too famous." He turned around and started to walk away. "I know the rules say I have to fight to the death if my true identity is revealed, but my Master's a coward. I was given explicit orders to head back if my attacks failed."

"You're leaving?!" Saber demanded furiously.

Lancer stopped walking, his back still turned. "Follow me if you want, but you better be prepared to die."

And with that, he jumped into the air and was gone in seconds, even as Saber angrily shouted for him to stop.

He clutched at his chest, the wound not fully healed yet. A pity, really; had the wound healed itself by now, Saber would have been inclined to go after Lancer and finish their battle.

At present, the knight turned around to see his Master run up to him. For a few seconds, the girl, her face tinged red, stared at him just as she had done before his fight with Lancer, as though she had never seen someone of the opposite gender before.

Saber remained unfazed. During his human life, it wasn't very uncommon for him to get looks from various women (a few of said looks were...not pleasant, but he had absolutely no wish to think of that), so he supposed it was no surprise that his female Master would react to him in such a way.

She seemed to realize she was blatantly staring at him. She quickly shook her head as her blush faded, then opened her mouth to speak.

"Who _are_ you?"

"Must you even ask that?" Saber asked, not letting his own confusion show. "I am a Saber, your Servant. You are the one who summoned me, so you should know all too well why I am here."

The girl blinked quizzically. "You're a Saber Servant?"

"Yes," Saber said patiently, "so it might be easier to call me Saber."

"Okay, then." She nodded slowly. "That's kind of an odd name, though. My name is Shira Emiya."

It took everything Saber had to remain neutral, to not react to that last word his Master had uttered.

 _She is an_ Emiya _?_ he thought. _My luck must be even lower than last time._ But if this girl was truly a member of the Emiya family, how could she not know why he had been summoned? Surely _he_ would have told her...

"So," Shira began, "I guess my next question is—"

"You are not a typical Master, are you?" Saber interrupted.

"Uh..." Shira's voice trailed off, a confused expression on her face again.

"Be it as it may, you are still my Master," Saber said. "Now that our contract has been completed, I vow to never do anything to betray you."

Shira's confusion gave way to frustration. "Hey, don't call me Master; you're freaking me out here!"

"Then I shall call you Shira." Saber paused slightly, considering it. "Yes; I think I like the sound of that name much better, anyway."

Shira gasped in pain, looking down at her left hand as she rubbed it with her right; at that same moment, Saber turned away from her, sensing the presence of another Master-Servant pair nearby.

Deciding he may as well confront the enemy sooner rather than later, Saber turned back to face Shira and let his hand fall from his chest.

"Shira, heal this wound for me," he commanded.

The girl now looked rather embarrassed as she looked up at him. "Um...healing is far beyond what I can do. Sorry. Besides, it looks like it's healed on its own."

This time, Saber could not stop his eyes from widening slightly. Not only was his Master an Emiya, but she was also apparently an amateur magus? How could she have summoned him, then?

"Very well," he said, his voice remaining impassive as he stared into the direction where he'd sensed another presence. "My regeneration only healed the exposed part. Nonetheless, one more battle should not hinder me."

So saying, Saber leapt up and away, over the estate's gate, and into the night.

* * *

"Saber, wait!"

Shira wasted no time in hurrying after the boy who claimed to be her Servant. She rushed to the gate, opened it, and continued running into the streets.

She turned a corner just in time to see Saber fighting the red-clad swordswoman. With a single, powerful strike, Saber broke through the defense of the woman's twin blades and sliced her along her chest. The woman stumbled and fell to her knees, gasping for breath and staring at Saber with an odd look that Shira could not identify; was it...surprise?

"Archer, vanish!" a female voice called out as Saber prepared a finishing blow. The woman—Archer, Shira supposed—disappeared like dust in the wind.

A gem was thrown at Saber, but it vaporized before it could even touch him. He charged forward, his sword raised.

Shira knew at once what he intended to do.

"Saber, no! Stop!" she yelled desperately.

Saber stopped dead in his tracks, looking over his shoulder at Shira, his sword still raised.

"This is Archer's Master," he said. "We'd be foolish not to kill her now!"

Shira's frustration was now close to boiling point. "Alright, look, I don't know why you're here or what the heck you're talking about. Before you continue trying to randomly kill people, please explain to me what's going on."

"'Randomly kill people'?" Saber repeated. "You're the one who is not making any sense. You never turn down a chance to slay an enemy. I will not obey such a command."

"Saber," Shira fixed him with a glare, "put the sword down, _now_! You shouldn't even be fighting while you're still injured."

A few seconds of silence passed.

"So, are you going to lower your sword now?" the girl asked.

Saber shifted his gaze to her. "If an enemy is before me, I have no choice but to strike them down."

The girl sounded amused. "So you're telling me that a Servant—a Saber at that—is willing to disobey a direct order from his Master?"

The seconds crawled by. For an instant, Shira wondered if Saber would go ahead and kill the girl anyway, but he finally lowered his sword. Shira let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding.

She looked over towards the girl; up until now, she'd been too focused on preventing Saber from committing murder to spare a glance at his intended victim. What she saw caused her lips to part slightly in shock.

Dressed in a red top and black miniskirt, with long, wavy black hair tied in twin tails, it could only be—

"Tohsaka?!"

Rin Tohsaka smiled as easily as if she hadn't spent the last few minutes on the wrong end of an invisible sword. "Good evening, Emiya."

* * *

A few minutes later, Shira, Saber, and Rin were standing out on the porch of the estate. Rin picked up a piece of shattered glass and ran a finger over it; in seconds, the window fixed itself as if it had never been broken.

"Better," Rin said. "I expect that you're at least capable of _that_ , Emiya."

"Incredible," Shira replied, impressed. She then sobered. "Actually, I can't do anything like that."

Rin frowned. "You're kidding. That's like the first thing they teach you."

Shira shifted uncomfortably. "Well, what little magic I know is the stuff my dad taught me, and none of that is exactly formal."

"So, you can't create a path or control the five elements or _anything_?" Rin sounded more and more incredulous with each word.

"No," was the only thing Shira could say.

"Which means you're a complete novice," Rin concluded, folding her arms across her chest.

"Not _completely_ ," Shira contradicted, feeling a little defensive. "I know some reinforcement spells."

This did not seem to please Rin. "Out of all the magic you could learn, you chose that?"

 _Would you rather I knew no magic at all?_ Shira thought testily, but she kept it to herself.

"How is it that you were able to summon Saber, then?" Rin glanced at the knight, who'd spent the whole time in silence, then glanced back at Shira. "So I'm guessing you have no idea of the situation you're in."

"Situation?" Shira prompted, ignoring her annoyance at Rin's bluntness in favor of her eagerness at finally getting some answers.

"You've been drafted into a tournament of sorts, the Holy Grail War," Rin said. "It's a battle royale that occurs every six decades."

Shira blinked; whatever she'd been expecting, it hadn't been that. "There's a war?"

Rin nodded, continuing. "Seven magi are chosen as Masters and are granted a Servant and three Command Seals—those markings on your hand. I was chosen to be a Master, as well. Once all seven Masters and Servants are chosen, a battle begins to unfold to determine who will obtain the Holy Grail.

"Your Command Seals give you absolute authority over your Servant. You can even use a Command Seal to force your Servant to do something they don't want to do. However, every time you use one, you lose a command, so you should always keep your last Command Seal in reserve."

Shira stared at Rin as though she were speaking Latin. "Okay...you lost me there."

Rin ignored her and stepped over to Saber. "It looks like you haven't fully materialized. I'm guessing it has something to do with your Master; her incompetence must have interfered with your summoning."

"Correct," Saber said calmly. "Shira does not possess nearly enough mana to complete the process, so I can't take spirit form, and regenerating my life force will take time."

"Good grief!" Rin exclaimed. "If I were your Master, I could take care of both those problems in a matter of seconds!"

"Are you saying I'm not cut out to be a Master?" Shira asked.

Rin shot her a dismissive look. "Not even close."

Shira bit her lip to keep from saying anything. It wasn't like she was in any position to argue. But if Miss Superiority over there didn't stop with the snide comments, no matter how truthful they were, Shira would not be responsible for her words.

"Well, we should get going," Rin was now saying.

"Go where?" Shira questioned.

"We're going to pay a visit to the man who oversees this whole War."

* * *

The next hour was spent walking through the silent town. All the houses that could be seen were dark, and the only light came from the occasional streetlamp, the stars, and the moon. Before they left the Emiya estate, Shira had tried to get Saber to take off his armor, since it would be very conspicuous if anyone saw them, but he refused. As a last resort, Shira draped her old yellow raincoat over Saber. It made him stick out even more, but at least it hid his armor.

At last, they made it to a grand-looking church.

"So this supervisor guy lives here?" Shira wondered out loud.

"Yes," Rin answered. "This is Kotomine Church."

"Shira," Saber spoke up. "I think it would be best if I stayed outside."

Shira turned to look at him, an eyebrow raised in question.

"I accompanied you here so I could protect you," Saber explained. "If anything happens, I should be able to find you within its proximity. Be on your guard, Master."

Shira mutely nodded.

The church's interior was almost pitch-black as Rin opened the doors; even so, Shira could tell that the room was just as impressive as the building's exterior.

"Tohsaka," Shira began, "how well do you know this priest?"

"Well, I can tell you that he's a magus," Rin said as the girls continued walking towards the front of the chapel, "and he's also my legal guardian. You see, he's kind of served as my second teacher."

"Are you serious? So this guy is both a priest _and_ a magus?" Last Shira checked, people who practiced magic and people who worked in the church did not get along at all. A priest who was also a magus should have been unthinkable as far as the Holy Church was concerned.

"Yes, not to mention he can be a pain in the ass," Rin replied flatly. By now, they had reached the altar. "His name is Kirei Kotomine. He was one of my father's pupils, so we've basically been forced to put up with each other for ten years now. We would have nothing to do with each other if I'd had it my way."

A deep baritone broke in. "And I would have preferred not to have a student who can't show her teacher respect."

A tall man stepped out of the darkness and towards the opposite side of the altar.

"I've brought the seventh Master here to talk with you," Rin told him. "She's technically a magus, but she's such an amateur that it pained me to ignore it."

Kotomine's lip curled upward as he looked at Shira. "Tell me, child, what would your name be?"

Shira tried not to flinch under the priest's stare. His dark eyes seemed just as penetrating as Saber's, but while the knight's gaze had left her breathless, Kotomine's did nothing but make her skin crawl.

"Shira Emiya," she said, thankful that her voice was steady.

"Well, Emiya." Kotomine smiled even more, a soft chuckle rumbling from his throat. "And you are certain that you're Saber's Master?"

"No, I'm not," Shira said at once. "All this stuff about Masters and Grail Wars—I don't understand any of it."

Kotomine hummed. "Yes, that _is_ a bit of a problem. And since this is the first time Rin has ever asked for my help, I suppose the least I can do for you, Shira, is oblige."

His smile faded. "Being a Master is not something you can hand over from one person to the next. Once you become a Master, you cannot simply walk away from it. Those Command Seals on your hand are a stigmata. The role of Master is a trial that has been rewarded to you. You can't turn away simply because it's inconvenient.

"If you truly wish to give up your role as Master, you only choice is to win the Grail and make your wish."

"And what wish would that be?" Shira asked.

"It can be anything your heart desires," Kotomine answered, spreading his arms out in a grand gesture. "If you win the Grail, you have the chance for the contents of your soul to be wiped clean. In fact, you could also go back in time and start your life all over. If you have your wish come true, you'll be thanking your lucky stars that you were chosen to be a Master."

"Kirei, would you get to the point?" Rin cut in impatiently, putting her hands on her hips. "I only brought Emiya here so you could explain the rules to her."

Kotomine closed his eyes briefly. "Guess I'll cut to the chase, then. Here are the underlying principles behind the Grail War: It's a series of battles fought between seven Masters and their Servants. Participants are not chosen simply because they wish to be; they are chosen as part of a ritual to determine who is the most worthy to possess the Holy Grail."

Shira's eyes widened. "Are you talking about an _actual_ Holy Grail? But that's only a myth!"

Kotomine smirked. "Trust me, when the Holy Grail materializes in this city, it will be the genuine article. The miracles performed by the Servants should be enough to prove that this is real.

"Servants are the spirits of historical or legendary figures who are summoned forth by the Holy Grail and materialize here in physical form. In theory, they are supposed to stay in spirit form and stay close to their Master's side, only materializing to fight when the need arises."

"Yes, but Emiya's Servant is a bit different," Rin interrupted, her voice laced with disdain. "Because his Master is so incredibly inept, he can't take spirit form."

Shira didn't bother resisting the glare she shot at Rin. _Okay, Tohsaka, I get it; I suck at magic. Let's move on._

Kotomine continued as though Rin hadn't spoken. "The Grail's ability to resurrect the dead can easily be considered magic. If the Grail is capable of such power, it is safe to assume that it can grant equal or greater power to its possessor. In light of this, questions about its authenticity should be moot."

"All right, then; I'll assume the Holy Grail really exists." Shira frowned. "But why do you have to _kill_ people over it? If the Grail has all this power, why not just share it instead?"

"A logical question," Kotomine concurred, "but unfortunately, we don't have that choice. The seven Masters are those the Grail feels are worthy to possess it, and it uses these Wars to determine who is the most capable of all. Everything is carried out by the Grail itself: the selection of the Masters, the summoning of the Servants, all of it."

He spread out his arms again. "This War is a tradition, a ritual where people have fought and died in an effort to obtain the Holy Grail."

 _Fought and died...?_ Shira thought, her insides clenching.

"But," she burst out, "just because only one Master can win doesn't mean you have to kill all the others!"

"Wait a minute," Rin said barely after Shira had finished. "There's no rule saying that you must eliminate all other Masters to win the Holy Grail."

"There's not?" Shira asked, looking at Rin.

"The Holy Grail is a _spiritual_ object," the older girl said. "Humans can't even touch it; only Servants can do that. So the objective is to eliminate all Servants except your own."

Shira huffed even as she felt herself relaxing. "Well, you could've said that in the first place. Just because you choose to fight in the Grail War, it doesn't necessarily mean you'll end up _dead_."

"Let me ask you a question," Kotomine spoke. "Do you think you can defeat your own Servant?"

 _What kind of question is that?_ Shira thought as she turned back to the priest. She had a feeling that this question was rhetorical, so she remained silent.

"Servants are quite powerful," Kotomine went on. "It's hard for other Servants to defeat them, much less an ordinary Master. But a Servant can't exist without a Master, which means..." His voice trailed off.

"The easiest way to take out a Servant," Shira realized, "is to take out their Master."

"Yes, but a Servant doesn't immediately disappear after they've lost their Master," Rin said. "Another Master—one who's lost their original Servant—can use their Command Seals and form a new contract with them."

"I see." Shira bobbed her head slightly. "But what happens if you lose all your Command Seals? Wouldn't that break your contract with your Servant?"

"That is entirely plausible," Kotomine said. "If you use up all three Command Seals, you are relieved of your duty as Master. However, if a magus were actually to do this, he or she would be forever branded as a complete and utter fool."

Kotomine smiled at Shira, who felt a sudden chill run through her body. Perhaps the smile was meant to reassure her, but she couldn't help but think of it as a leer.

"Of course, if that were to happen to you, I will personally guarantee your safety. That is my role as supervisor of this War," the priest put a hand to his heart, "and I will do everything to uphold that position.

"This is the fifth time our fair city has hosted the Grail War." Kotomine folded his hands behind his back. "The last one was ten years ago."

 _Ten years ago...?_ Shira thought, but mentally shook herself before she could continue that line of thought. She couldn't think of that now.

Instead, she addressed the first thing Kotomine had said. "Fifth time?! So the Grail War's been done before? What _are_ you, crazy?"

Kotomine spoke as if he hadn't heard Shira's outburst. "In the past, the Grail Wars grew to be incredibly brutal. Masters were driven solely by their desires and butchered each other indiscriminately. At the beginning of the third War, the Magic Association appointed my father as supervisor." He gestured towards the church. "You could say I inherited that same post."

"Well," Shira declared, "it sounds to me like these Grail Wars really bring out the ugly sides in people."

"Oh?" Kotomine prompted.

"The earlier Masters were willing to break the rules of the magi to get what they wanted." Shira's eyes narrowed. "What do you think would happen if some bloodthirsty maniac won the Grail and got their wish? It'd be nothing more than a disaster."

"It does not matter who obtains the Holy Grail," Kotomine said indifferently. "The Association will not interfere. Our only role is to ensure that the rules continue to be followed. If you take issue with that, then become the victor. After all, relying on others can be incredibly insufficient."

Shira glared at him. "Don't patronize me," she said hotly. "I have no interest in this stupid War of yours."

Kotomine merely smiled. "Are you telling me you don't care even if someone unfit obtains the Grail, knowing that they could cause great harm to others?"

Shira's glare softened. He did have a point, she had to admit.

"And you're saying that none of these facts have piqued your interest about what happened ten years ago?"

Shira's body tensed. _Don't go there, please don't go there!_

But of course, Kotomine did not hear her silent plea. "At the end of the fourth War, the Grail was touched by someone unworthy to possess it. We have no idea what this Master meant to do, but we are all aware of the atrocity that emerged as a result of his actions."

A strangled gasp tore from Shira's throat. Suddenly, she wasn't in the darkened church at all, but back inside that burning wasteland from a decade prior.

_Fire, so much fire, smoke, can't breathe, have to keep running, keep running, stay alive—_

"What's wrong? Are you all right?"

Rin's voice snapped Shira out of the flashback.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Shira said quickly, suddenly registering her racing heart and that she'd placed her fingers against her temple. A few beads of sweat were trickling down her face.

"Officially, the cause of that fire is still unknown," Kotomine said, "but it's a scar left by the fourth Holy Grail War."

"So what was the outcome?" Shira asked.

Kotomine paused before answering. "There wasn't one. As I said, the Holy Grail was touched by someone who was unworthy and the War ended. But before him, there was another man who touched it. This man had done his best to avoid fighting, so the Grail would not fully materialize and refused to acknowledge him as its rightful owner."

"That's why any strategy that tries to avoid confrontation is pointless," Rin summarized. "This guy he's referring to was basically a coward."

A moment of silence passed. "This Master you're talking about was you, wasn't it?" Shira asked Kotomine.

"About halfway through the battle, I quit," the priest replied. "Unfortunately, I had lost my Servant, so I asked my father for protection." He turned his back on Shira and Rin. "That is all I wish to say on that subject."

Kotomine continued speaking as he took a few paces away. "Without a Servant, a Master is not qualified to win the Grail." He turned back to face the girls. "Once the tournament reduces the seven of you down to just one, the Holy Grail will reveal itself to the victor."

He fixed his hard gaze on Shira. "I will ask you again, Shira Emiya. Will you or will you not be a Master in the Holy Grail War?"

Shira looked down at the floor. A few minutes ago, her answer would have been to refuse, but now...now she knew there was only one answer to give.

"I'll do it," she said quietly, looking up at Kotomine. "If what you're saying is true, if the Grail Wars did cause that fire, then there's no way I can just stand by and let something like that happen again."

"Okay, that's settled then," Rin said pleasantly. "Let's go."

She turned around to walk out of the church building, and Shira started to follow her.

"Rejoice, child," Kotomine's voice rang out. "You have the chance for your wish to be granted."

Shira stopped walking.

"But you need a distinguishable enemy to see your wish come to fruition," the priest continued. "You may not want to admit it, but in order for virtue to prevail, I'm afraid there first needs to be an evil that must be defeated."

"What are you saying?" Shira asked a little sharply.

"For you, your most noble aspirations and your most despicable desires all flow from the same source." Kotomine smirked. "Please, do not pretend you don't already know this. Human beings have had this conflict since the beginning of the world."

Shira continued walking out of the church, choosing to ignore Kotomine's words.

* * *

It was well after midnight by the time Shira, Saber, and Rin made it to the intersection separating Shira's neighborhood from Rin's, and a white mist had begun creeping into the air.

"I've helped you as much as I can," Rin told Shira.

"Thanks, Tohsaka; I appreciate it," Shira responded, and it was the truth, no matter how rude the school idol had been to her.

Rin frowned. "Don't waste your breath. We _are_ enemies, remember?"

"Shira!" Saber suddenly called out.

Shira turned around just as she heard giggling—rather familiar giggling. From out of the mist, the white-haired little girl from last night approached.

And standing beside her—Shira forced back a gulp—was a gray-skinned giant of a man.

"Hello again, miss," the little girl greeted. Her sweet tone was at odds with the cruel gleam in her red eyes. "This makes it the second time that we've met."


	4. A New Enemy and a New Ally

"This is bad," Rin said seriously. "That thing is way out of our league."

 _Don't need to tell me twice,_ Shira couldn't help thinking as she continued to stare at the giant. At present, he was standing in silence, one of his eyes glowing red, but Shira was certain that a single swing of one of his enormous fists would be enough to shatter bones. And that wasn't even factoring in the huge sword he held.

"Nice to meet you, Rin." The white-haired little girl curtsied daintily. "My name is Ilya, Ilyasviel von Einzbern. You know who I am, right?"

"Von Einzbern?" Rin repeated. Before Shira could ask her how she knew that name, Ilya giggled again.

"There's no point in knowing everybody's names," she said cheerfully. "In just a few minutes, you'll all be dead."

Shira couldn't resist a fearful gasp; Ilya talking about death with such childlike innocence was just as unnerving as it had been last night.

"Okay; hope you're ready to die."

And was it just her, or did Ilya seem to be looking at her specifically as she said that?

"Go get 'em, Berserker!"

The giant leapt through the air towards them with an inhuman roar.

"Shira, stay back!" Saber said tersely.

"Saber, wait—!"

But Saber, discarding the raincoat he'd been wearing, had already rushed towards Berserker before Shira could even get the words out. A scant few seconds later, Berserker had landed on the ground with a thud, his sword swung downwards. At that same instant, Saber's own sword blocked the attack and managed to deflect it with a grunt. Saber jumped over Berserker's second swing, then parried or dodged the next few blows that came his way.

"Saber!" Shira cried, her voice high with fright. During his previous battles with Lancer and Archer, Saber had been on the offensive, striking his opponents with everything he had, but with this thing called Berserker, Saber was purely on the defensive. All of his energy was spent in preventing the giant from reducing him to a bloody stain on the sidewalk—that was all he _could_ do.

With a horrible sinking feeling, Shira knew that Saber's defense tactics would not last forever.

"His sword is gigantic," Rin was saying, "yet he's swinging it like a toy."

Shira stared at her in a mixture of annoyance and panic. "Way to state the obvious, Tohsaka! We gotta get Saber out of here before he gets killed!"

"That's it!" Ilya cheered on her Servant. "Get him, get him!"

Saber leapt away from Berserker's latest strike, then jumped upward onto a telephone pole, running across the wire as easily as if he were still on solid ground. Berserker chased after him and cut the line, but Saber leapt to another telephone pole, then another, finally jumping to the ground—inches away from Ilya.

Whether or not Saber would have tried to kill Ilya, Shira never found out, as Berserker chose that moment to swing his sword at the knight from behind. Saber whirled around and barely managed to block the swing; the sheer force of Berserker's blow sent him flying and he crashed into a telephone pole.

"Run, Saber!" Shira shrieked.

"Finish him off for good, Berserker!" Ilya trilled.

With a bit of difficulty, Saber got to his feet. With another fearsome roar, Berserker struck his sword against the ground, the concrete cracking and dust flying at the impact. Saber jumped into the air and, with a battle cry, lifted his own sword to deliver his first blow against his enemy.

But Berserker struck back fiercely, sending Saber flying again. The knight twisted his body in midair and was able to land on his feet.

Less than a second later, Saber doubled over with a pained gasp, clutching at the reopened wound on his chest.

"Saber, _get out of there_!" _Please!_ Shira added desperately. It was only a matter of time before Berserker dealt him a fatal blow, and if this didn't end soon—

 _No!_ On a wild impulse, Shira made to rush forward, hell-bent on dragging Saber out of the fight herself. But before she could go more than three paces, Rin grabbed her and pulled her back.

Shira had more than half a mind to scream at her, but before she could do just that, Rin held out her arm, her hand in the shape of a gun, and chanted a brief spell. Black spheres of energy shot out from her index finger and crashed against Berserker's skin. But Rin's spell did absolutely nothing to the giant; it didn't even faze him as he slowly made his way to Saber.

"What the hell is this thing's body made of?!" Rin exclaimed in frustration.

"This is hopeless!" Shira cast her frantic gaze at Saber. "Saber, you have to _run_! _Now_!"

"No..." Saber mumbled as he slowly raised his head in time to see Berserker swing his sword at him. He quickly dodged, ignoring his wound, but Berserker struck at him again.

This time, Saber was unable to dodge. The blow sent him reeling and he fell unceremoniously to the ground, blood spilling freely from the gash Berserker inflicted.

"Saber!" Shira yelled.

Grunting in pain, Saber struggled to get up, using his sword as a crutch.

"Run!" Shira continued to yell. "You can't win this!"

"No..." Saber said again, sounding as though it hurt even to verbalize words. "I can still..."

 _But you can't,_ Shira thought miserably as she looked at him. Just a few hours ago, this boy radiated strength, fighting anyone he came across, giving as good as he got and never accepting defeat even when he sustained injuries. Now, though, this strong, proud knight was bloodied and deeply wounded, struggling to even stand, let alone continue a battle he surely must know was lost despite his assertions to the contrary.

Ilya giggled in triumph. "Isn't it obvious that you've lost? Berserker isn't your average Servant; he's the most powerful hero in all of Greek history."

"The Servant you summoned up," Rin spoke as though she couldn't quite believe her ears, "is a Greek hero?"

"Yep!" Ilya chirped brightly. "My Servant is none other than the famous Hercules!" Her chipper tone then switched to icy malice. "He's the strongest monster there is, a thousand times better than any stupid hero _you_ could summon."

Ilya glanced to where Saber was still leaning on his sword. "Go on, Berserker; chop off his head and put him out of his misery."

Shira's stomach lurched. This was it. Saber had well and truly lost. Berserker only needed one final swing of his gigantic sword, and Saber would be killed.

Saber would die.

 _Saber_ would die.

Saber would _die_.

Blood suddenly pounded in Shira's ears, and that same wild impulse from a few minutes ago was back with a vengeance. She couldn't just leave this boy to be killed. She had to save him. Whatever the cost, _she had to save him_.

Berserker raised his sword.

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Shira screamed, running forward before Rin could stop her. She rushed to Saber's side, pushed him away, and—

Berserker's blow came crashing down on Shira.

The girl let out a piercing scream as she fell, the pavement splattered with her blood. The world gave way to darkness a second later.

"Shira? Shira!" Saber gazed at his Master's motionless, bloodied form, not even bothering to hide his utter shock.

What on _Earth_ had possessed Shira to do such a thing? That attack had been meant for Saber, and as loathe as he was to admit it, it was supposed to have ended him right then and there. And it was a Servant's job to protect his Master, not the other way around, so why did _Shira_ feel the need to protect _him_?

The other two girls—Rin and Ilyasviel—seemed just as stunned as he was.

"Why did she...?" The white-haired girl recovered herself after a few seconds, huffing petulantly. "Jeeze, this has gotten boring. Come on, Berserker."

Saber barely noticed as Ilyasviel left with her Servant, who went into spirit form, and he hardly registered it when Rin began berating Shira's much too still body.

All he could do was wonder why his Master would risk her life—no, _throw_ her life away—for him.

* * *

_It was warm that evening, the light from the full moon illuminating everything it touched._

_"When I was younger, I used to want to become a Champion of Justice, too."_

_The preteen Shira tore her eyes away from the sky to look at Kiritsugu as they sat on the porch._

_"What do you mean, 'used to'?" she asked, her youthful face scrunched up in puzzlement. "You mean...you just gave up on it? Why would you do that?"_

_"Well, it's hard to explain," came her father's quiet reply. "Heroes don't last long, and the older you get, the harder it is to be one."_

_Shira stared out into space; that made some sense, she supposed._

_Kiritsugu continued, sounding more tired than usual. "I only wish I had come to that realization sooner."_

_A moment of silence passed before Shira piped up brightly. "Well, since it won't happen for you, then I'll just have to be one instead. Maybe you've gotten too old for it, but I still have plenty of time."_

_An earnest smile spread across the girl's face. "Don't worry, Dad. I'm gonna make that dream of yours come true someday. I promise."_

_Even as young as she was, it was a promise she intended to keep with her life._

_"Thank you, Shira," Kiritsugu said. "That's a relief."_

_Shira continued to beam as she gazed at the moon. After a while, though, she had a sense that maybe it was_ too _quiet._

_"Dad?"_

_Kiritsugu didn't answer._

_"Dad?"_

_Still no answer. Shira looked at her father again, a little confused. Kiritsugu had never failed to acknowledge her before, so why...?_

_"...Dad?" Shira shook his arm; still no response. She shook him more vigorously; still nothing._

_Kiritsugu was sitting there on the porch, his smile peaceful and his eyes closed. By all appearances, there shouldn't have been anything wrong, and yet..._

_"Dad!" A growing panic was rising in Shira. She wrapped her fingers around Kiritsugu's wrist, feeling for his pulse._

_There was nothing, not even the faintest hint of a heartbeat._

_Kiritsugu Emiya—the man who had rescued Shira from certain death, the man who adopted her and gave her a home, the man whose ideals she had just taken as her own—was dead._

No... _The young girl's eyes filled with tears._ No, no, no, no, _NO_!

_The tears spilled over, and Shira did not fight to contain her sobs._

_"Daddy...!"_

* * *

When Shira woke with a start the next morning, the first thing she noticed was the metallic taste of blood in her mouth, followed by the fact that her torso was wrapped with bandages.

She stared at the clean, white bandages in blank confusion. _When did those get there?_

Well, she supposed she could figure that out later, after she washed up for the day. Shira slowly got up from her bed, her head suddenly pounding as she did so. Pressing a hand to her temple, she grabbed some clothes, stumbled out of her room, and headed for the bathroom.

After changing clothes and washing her face and teeth, Shira felt a little better. She washed her mouth out with water to get rid of the blood, vaguely wondering if she'd bit the inside of her cheek while sleeping last night.

 _Come to think of it, it's almost too quiet,_ Shira thought as she walked through the hall. Weren't Sakura and Taiga supposed to be here by now? Then again, she didn't take a look at the time yet, so...

Shira opened the door to the dining room and stopped short with a sharp exhale. There, sitting at the table and sipping a cup of tea, was Rin.

"Good, you're up," Rin said with a polite smile. "Hope you don't mind me letting myself in."

Shira blinked owlishly at her. "Uh...what are you doing in my house?"

Rin ignored the question as Shira sat down across from her. "Do you realize you don't have any decent tea here?" The black-haired girl made a face. "If you're gonna use teabags, at least use the triangular ones."

Shira blinked again. _I want to know what you're doing in my house, and all you can think about is the quality of my tea?_ she thought, more bewildered than irritated.

"Tohsaka, what are you do—?" Shira began to repeat her question, but was interrupted by Rin raising her hand.

"Hold on, don't I get _some_ thanks for carrying you home last night?"

"You...carried me home?" Shira parroted incomprehensively.

She fell silent as she thought about last night (so it hadn't been a dream?). There was that fight she witnessed in the schoolyard, then she was attacked—twice—by Lancer, then Saber appeared—

_Saber!_

"That's it! We were attacked by that Berserker guy!" Shira suddenly remembered, her stomach churning as that image of a bleeding, struggling Saber appeared in her mind. "But what happened?" she wondered out loud, lifting her shirt a little to take another look at her bandages. "I thought for sure I was dead."

"Your wounds just started healing on their own," Rin answered, taking another sip of tea.

"What do you mean?" Shira asked as she looked back up at her.

"Saber has the ability to regenerate," Rin reasoned, "so maybe your body's found a way to tap into that."

Shira could buy that; it would certainly explain why she was still alive after taking a blow from Berserker.

"In theory, it's impossible for a Servant to transfer mana to their Master," Rin frowned a bit, "but we can't forget that you are the impossible Master."

"And you're saying what, exactly?" Shira's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Masters don't put their necks on the line for their Servants," Rin said evenly. "Think about it; if you die, then Saber goes away, too."

 _What else was there to do?_ Shira thought, annoyed. _Just stand there and let Saber die?_

She was about to say as much to Rin when the other girl stood up, the teapot in hand, and went to the kitchen.

"So, Emiya," Rin spoke as she got another cup to pour more tea, "what's your plan of attack?"

Shira paused. "I...don't really have one. All I know is that I don't want a repeat of what happened ten years ago." She accepted the cup Rin gave her. "The Holy Grail doesn't mean anything to me."

Rin sighed as she sat back down. "I figured you'd say that." She glared at Shira. "If Saber hears you say that, he'll kill you."

"...He will?" was all Shira could think to say.

"Wake up, Emiya!" Rin snapped. "You think Servants do this without any ulterior motives? It's not just the Masters that get their wish if they win the Grail; the Servants get that, too, remember? It's the reason many of them become Epic Spirits. Why else would they answer their Master's summons if not to have a wish fulfilled?"

"So you're saying Saber made a contract with me because he wants the Grail?" Shira guessed.

Her stomach twisted in knots as something Kotomine had said came rushing back to her:

_"This War is a tradition, a ritual where people have fought and died in an effort to obtain the Holy Grail."_

A disturbing thought occurred to Shira. Would Saber go as far as to kill civilians if it meant it would further his own goals? Never mind what he planned to do to other Servants, but what about people who were blissfully unaware of Holy Grail Wars?

"But Saber's just as human as I am!" Shira unconsciously curled her hand into a fist. _Surely, he wouldn't..._

"He lost tons of blood last night!" she added quickly when she saw Rin raise an eyebrow in confusion.

"Servants may seem alive, but they're not," Rin said calmly. "When they're killed, they just go back to where they came from."

Shira scowled, glaring at her tea. "It doesn't give them license to kill each other!" _Or people who have nothing to do with anything, for that matter._

Rin grunted. "Listen, Emiya, if you let the Masters run around unchecked, then innocent people will die!"

 _Tohsaka, you're really not helping my train of thought here,_ Shira thought sourly.

"Servants use mana as fuel," Rin went on. "The more mana they have, the more they're capable of matching the full strength they had when they were alive."

"Where are you going with this?" Shira questioned.

Rin leveled her with a serious expression. "I'm saying that there are Servants who will use a person's soul as sustenance. Some Masters force their Servants to eat someone's life energy if it means an increase in the Servant's power."

" _What_?!" Shira exclaimed. "Servants go around _eating people_?"

She forced herself to swallow down her tea, more for something to do than because she was actually thirsty.

She found herself going back to her earlier thought. Was it possible that Saber would drain someone of their energy, even if it meant killing them, in order to strengthen himself?

 _No, no, he_ wouldn't _._ Perhaps it was much too soon to know for sure—Shira had only met Saber last night—but she _had_ to believe that he wouldn't do something like that.

She silently pushed her empty cup away.

"What are you going to do?" Rin asked at present. "Just stand by and watch no matter how vile the other Masters get?"

"If they endanger someone's life, I'll stop them," Shira declared.

Rin shook her head. "You've got to be kidding. You're not willing to attack another Master, but if they do something wrong, _then_ you'll defeat them?"

"Yes, I realize I'm trying to have it both ways," Shira admitted, a slightly frustrated edge to her voice, "but I just can't think of any real strategy here."

A sarcastically cheerful smile crossed Rin's face. "You know what the problem with that particular approach will be? That Master we ran into last night will hunt us until she kills us."

The hairs on the back of Shira's neck stood erect. She didn't doubt it one bit, if Ilya's merciless behavior was anything to go by.

"The Servant that little girl summoned is far beyond anything we can handle," Rin continued grimly. She paused momentarily, as if hesitating on what she should say next. "If we wait around, we're dead. You won't have any time to defend yourself."

"You'd love that, wouldn't you?" Shira asked dryly.

Rin glared at her. "Don't be stupid. I'm just telling it like it is."

"Oh, and here I was thinking you'd enjoy watching me be sliced to death." Shira raised an eyebrow. "After all, we _are_ enemies; you said so last night."

"That was before Berserker attacked us!" Rin protested.

"So what are you suggesting?"

Rin let out an annoyed breath. "What I'm _suggesting_ , Emiya, is to form an alliance. At least until Berserker is taken out."

"...An alliance?" Shira repeated, her eyes widening in surprise as all sarcasm was forgotten.

"Yes, an alliance," Rin confirmed, her glare fading. "Archer's still wounded—no thanks to your Saber—and she won't be fully healed for a while, which makes her half as useful. And Saber has a Master that's dragging him down, so he's half as useful, too. It all evens out."

Shira huffed. "Again with the incompetent Master stuff? Come on, I'm not that bad."

Rin smirked. "Of course not; you're worse."

"Give it a rest, would you?"

"So, how about it?" Rin asked, ignoring what Shira had just said. "If you agree to become allies, then I'll teach you about magical lore you don't know. Whaddya say?"

Shira did not reply right away. What Rin was saying did make sense; Shira was very inexperienced, so she could use a good teacher. And in any case, if it ever came time for her to fight Rin, Shira would rather hold off on that for a good while. Being as unskilled as Shira was currently, Rin could easily wipe the floor with her without much effort.

But on the other hand, in the last twelve hours or so, Rin had proven that she wasn't nearly as nice as her school idol image (there was a reason why she was said to have zero enemies) made her out to be. She was brutally honest and snide as all hell, and Shira had a feeling that they may just try killing each other whether Berserker was defeated or not.

In any case, Rin didn't seem like the type of teacher who would patiently tell her what she was doing wrong and encourage her to do better; more like she'd browbeat and insult Shira until she got something right. Could she really stand for what would probably be several days of magic lessons with Rin?

 _Yes, I can,_ Shira decided, having made up her mind. She didn't expect Rin and herself to become friends, but having her as an ally and teacher would be helpful, even if it was temporary.

 _Besides, I've survived worse,_ Shira added, suppressing a bittersweet smile. Out loud, she said, "Okay, Tohsaka; it's a deal."

"Very well," Rin agreed, sounding satisfied.

The girls stood up. "Oh, by the way," Shira added, "thanks for getting me home last night. I guess I owe you another one."

"Yeah, sure," Rin replied noncommittally as she walked to the door. She turned around to face Shira. "Emiya, just because we're allies now, it doesn't change the fact that we'll have to fight eventually. I suggest you stop thinking of the other Masters as human beings."

And with that, Rin walked out of the room to presumably go home, leaving Shira to her thoughts.

Whether she liked it or not, Shira had made the choice to participate in the Holy Grail War. In some ways, it still didn't seem real, like she was trapped in some surreal dream world. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she herself had no interest in the Grail, no wish for it to grant.

 _"Rejoice, child,"_ Kotomine's voice echoed. _"You have the chance for your wish to be granted."_

Bile suddenly rose in Shira's throat as a mental image of that fire appeared. She covered her mouth and forced herself to swallow, leaving an unpleasant, burning taste.

_"For you, your most noble aspirations and your most despicable desires all flow from the same source."_

Had that priest been implying that she use the Holy Grail to prevent the fire from happening?

 _No,_ Shira told herself firmly. _I'm only in this because I want to save people._

She thought about Saber. He had sustained terrible wounds, but still insisted on fighting. _He wanted to protect me,_ she realized, _just as I had wanted to protect him._

"Oh, my God!" she exclaimed suddenly. "Where is he?!"

The very last time Shira had seen Saber, he'd been bleeding like a stuck pig. Was he okay? Or was he still injured? And if he was, why was she still standing there?

With only the thought of her Servant's safety in her head, Shira set out to find him.

* * *

Several minutes later, all the guest rooms had been checked, but there was no sign of the young knight. Shira had searched the hallways, the bathroom, the living room, even her own bedroom, and still no Saber. Obviously, he wasn't in the house, but Shira didn't even consider the possibility that he left the estate entirely. He'd all but explicitly stated to her last night that he intended to protect her; how could he do that if he'd left?

Shira decided to check the dojo; it was one of the few places she hadn't looked. And if Saber wasn't there...

 _He could always be in the shed,_ Shira thought as she went outside, but she didn't sound convinced even in her head. If Saber wasn't in the dojo, then she'd have to accept that he had left her to deal with this Grail War on her own.

...Why did that thought sadden her so much?

It didn't take very long until she made it to the dojo. Shira slid the door open and closed it behind her. To her relief, Saber was sitting in a corner of the dojo, and he looked fine as far as she could tell.

Shira took a few steps closer to Saber, but stopped when she got a better look at him. He was sitting cross-legged on the wooden floor; his posture was casual, but he somehow made even that look dignified. The silver armor, blue shirt, and black leggings were gone, replaced by a white collared shirt, a blue tie, and navy dress pants; by all appearances, one would think he was a normal boy ready to go to church rather than the medieval warrior he was. Instead of being reflected by moonlight, as he had last night, he was now bathed in the sunlight streaming in from the windows.

For a few seconds, Shira let herself forget everything, just as she had when she'd first beheld Saber. She forgot about Masters, Grail Wars, her alliance with Rin, and even her ability to breathe. She may have wondered earlier if she'd just dreamed up the events of last night, but she found herself glad that Saber wasn't a dream.

She didn't think her subconscious would be able to conceive of someone so beautiful anyway.

Saber opened his eyes as if shook out from deep thought and turned his head in Shira's direction.

"You are up and around," Saber stated neutrally as he stood up.

Shira blinked, startled. "Um, yeah," she replied, her fingers absentmindedly playing with a lock of hair. "I just woke up a few minutes ago."

Saber stepped closer to Shira with a scrutinizing gaze. "You still don't look entirely well to me."

Shira's breath hitched and she quickly backed away from Saber, hoping her face hadn't turned red. "I-it's okay; really. I'm fine."

She wasn't sure if she was talking about the injury inflicted on her by Berserker, the chest wound she'd gotten from Lancer's Gae Bolg (which still stung from time to time even if it was partially healed), or the affect Saber seemed to have on her.

If the blond had noticed anything odd about his Master's behavior, he didn't show it. "That is good to hear. Now that you are feeling better, I would like to address the events that transpired last night."

"Sure," Shira agreed, averting her eyes to Saber. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I would prefer my Master to not do what you did yesterday," Saber said.

Shira's eyes widened in surprise, but before she could speak, Saber continued.

"Combat is my area of expertise. I would prefer you to focus on areas in which _you_ excel. As my Master, you have no need to protect me."

Saber's voice was completely calm and matter-of-fact; even so, Shira couldn't help but feel nettled.

"Are you kidding me with this?" she demanded. "If I hadn't done anything, Berserker would've killed you!"

Saber looked a little taken aback by Shira's outburst, but he quickly schooled his features in his usual stoic expression. "In that case, I would have just died. My battle with Berserker was not something you should have been hurt for. Again, there is nothing to be gained from you protecting me."

 _Well, maybe I won't save you next time,_ Shira thought peevishly. And how could he talk about the possibility of him dying so simply? Did he really think so little of his own life?

"Look, Saber—" Shira suddenly cut herself off, not knowing where to go with this. Maybe a subject change was in order. "You still want me to call you Saber, right?"

"Yes," Saber agreed, apparently not caring about the change in topic. "We have established a contract as Master and Servant, and I will be true to that contract until we have met our goal."

Shira frowned. "And," she began slowly, "that goal for you is winning the Grail War?"

 _This_ was what she needed to talk to Saber about, even before telling him about the alliance she forged with Rin: if his goal was to get the Holy Grail, how far would he be willing to go?

"Is that not why you summoned me?" Saber asked.

 _But I never summoned you at all,_ Shira mentally pointed out. She doubted she would've been able to summon Saber even if that had been her intention. All she'd been thinking about was stopping Lancer from killing her, then Saber had suddenly appeared and she found herself involved in a secret tournament where magi and Epic Spirits killed each other.

As far as Shira was concerned, Saber being summoned was a complete accident.

"Shira?" Saber's voice broke her out of her thoughts.

"Sorry; I kinda spaced out there," Shira said quickly. "But just so you know, Saber, you winning with me is pretty slim."

"Are you saying this because you lack the will to fight?" Saber asked.

"No, I intend to fight." Shira began pacing the dojo. "The problem is we don't stand a chance."

"If you think we are weaker than the other Masters and Servants, I can compensate for that."

Shira stopped pacing, stiffening at Saber's words.

"I will utilize everything I have at my disposal."

Shira whirled around to face Saber. "And what does that include, exactly?" she demanded harshly. "Attacking innocent people to boost your power?" There—she finally said it out loud. Now she just had to know Saber's answer.

"That is not a method I wish to use," the blond said. His still calm voice contained a note of coolness in it. "I consider attacking an unarmed person to be unacceptable. Doing so would violate my code as a knight."

Shira relaxed, a relieved smile spreading across her face. It seemed like her earlier assumption was correct; Saber had too honorable a nature to attack an innocent. However, she couldn't help but feel a little stupid as well. She really should have known better.

Before she could apologize, though, Saber continued speaking, the coolness in his voice more pronounced.

"If you were to ask me to attack someone who is not an enemy, you would have to use a Command Seal to force me to obey."

"Don't worry," Shira assured him. "I wouldn't make you do that. I'm sorry if I insulted you just now."

"Think nothing of it," Saber replied, accepting her apology. The cool edge had disappeared from his tone.

"So," Shira began after a pause, "speaking of utilizing everything we have, I agreed to team up with Rin Tohsaka for now. You know, Archer's Master from last night?"

Saber nodded in approval. "An intelligent decision, Shira. There are many things you can learn from her until you become a suitable Master."

"That's true," Shira agreed. She let out a small snort. "I just hope I survive the experience."

At that moment, the sound of something heavy falling could be heard at the door. Shira and Saber looked over to see Rin entering the dojo with a large bag in hand.

"Tohsaka, what are you doing here?" Shira asked, a little nonplussed. "I thought you went home."

"I did, but only to get my stuff." Rin smiled pleasantly as she dropped her bag. "Do you have a room I can stay in?"

"What?" Now Shira was _really_ confused. "Why would you need a room?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Rin asked. She didn't wait for a reply. "Since we're going to be partners, we'll need to share any information we get. The best way to do that is if I stay at your house."

"Wait just a minute here!" Shira strode over to Rin with her best glare. She wasn't confused anymore; now she was angry. "Did you seriously just invite yourself into my house?!"

No, that was the wrong phrase to use. Rin inviting herself into Shira's house would indicate that Rin had asked to stay over. The most accurate way to put it was that Rin had barged into Shira's house and expected a free room.

Rin spoke as though Shira hadn't said anything. "If you don't have a room set up, I'll just pick one myself."

"Tohsaka—"

"Oh," Rin interrupted as though something had just occurred to her, "and I'll need a place to set up shop, you know, for my magecraft."

"I never said anything about you—"

"And do you mind teaching me how to use your air conditioner?"

"Will you just _shut up_ for a second?!" Shira exploded. Honestly, this girl could give Shinji a run for his money when it came to rudeness. "First of all, I never invited you to live here. Second of all, how exactly were you planning to explain to Fuji-nee why you're suddenly living in my house?"

After all, telling the truth to Taiga—someone completely clueless about the supernatural—was absolutely not an option. If outsiders could be killed because they witnessed a battle between Servants, could they be killed simply because they acquired knowledge of the Grail War? Shira didn't want to find out.

Well, that, and she didn't know if Taiga would laugh in her face, have a heart attack, or pop a blood vessel if she told her what she'd gotten herself into.

Saber spoke for the first time since Rin's arrival. "If we are talking about rooms, Shira, then I too have a request. I think it's imperative that I sleep in the same room as you."

 _WHAT?!_ Shira turned around to face Saber (when had he walked closer to her?), the motion so fast that she nearly got a crick in her neck.

"Saber, that is _not_ funny," she snapped. "How am I supposed to sleep with a guy lying next to me?"

A little mental voice reminded her that Saber had suggested they share a _room_ , not a _bed_ , but Shira couldn't bring herself to care about technicalities.

For his part, Saber merely looked at her stonily. "It is a Servant's duty to protect their Master. You are at your most vulnerable while you sleep. If we were to be attacked in the night, I would need to be as close to you as possible in order to protect you efficiently."

Shira frowned. "And what if Fuji-nee—my guardian, by the way—caught us in my bed together? She'd think you were trying to molest me." Yes, Taiga would _definitely_ pop a blood vessel if that happened.

It was when Shira spoke that last sentence that Saber's expression changed. The stoniness, even stubbornness, on his face melted away as his eyes widened and he flinched back. He looked as though Shira had slapped him.

"Saber?" The redhead's frown faded as her anger from before was replaced by concern.

"I would _never_ do something like that to you." Saber's voice was strangely soft and quiet. "Such a thing has not even crossed my mind. You know that, do you not?"

Was that a plea she was hearing? Shira was surprised to see how affected he was by what she'd said. It was quite different from the strength and stoicism she had come to expect from him, a more vulnerable side that she didn't know was there.

"I know that," Shira said, her voice gentle, "but Fuji-nee wouldn't. But if you want, you can have the room next door to mine."

"And as for coming under attack at night," Rin butted in, "that won't be a problem."

Shira jumped a little at the sound of Rin's voice; she'd actually forgotten that the other girl was still there.

"I've put a barrier around the entire compound," Rin went on. "It'll immediately detect any kind of sneak attack, so you'd have plenty of time to rush to Shira's side and protect her, Saber."

"That sounds reasonable," Saber admitted, his voice and expression back to normal as though the last minute or so had never happened.

Rin nodded, then smiled. "Now, about my room..." Her voice trailed off as she picked up her bag and made to leave the dojo.

"Tohsaka—" Shira began, but she abruptly stopped herself, slumping her shoulders in defeat. It looked like she would just have to get used to the fact that Rin would be living at her house for a while.

Once Rin left, Shira exchanged a glance with Saber, and a thought suddenly occurred to her.

Since when did Rin start calling her by her first name?


	5. A Clash of Wills and Weapons

"This is your room, Shira?"

"Yeah, it is," Shira answered as she watched Saber examine her bedroom closely. "It's not much, but I really only use it for sleeping, so..."

Her voice trailed off awkwardly; she had never been more aware of how bare her room was. To say that Shira never felt the need to decorate the place was an understatement. There was nothing on the walls or the floor; even the desk at the far end of the room had nothing on it.

Saber stepped over to a wall, putting his hand against it. "It's all right; simple, but well cared for." He looked over at Shira. "A person's room is normally a reflection of the owner's character. For you, this is somehow...appropriate."

"Um...thanks?" Shira didn't really understand what Saber was trying to get at, but she didn't think he meant to insult her. Instead of pursuing the topic, she walked to the left side of her room, where a door leading to the side room was located.

"Here; this is where you'll be staying." Shira slid the door open; since the side room was normally unused, it was even sparser than her bedroom. "I'll get you a futon later."

Saber walked into the room and nodded. "This will do."

Just then, a bell rang to signal that Shira had a visitor.

"Someone's here," Saber stated, already tensing as if readying for a battle.

"It's just Sakura," Shira assured him. But her eyes suddenly widened and she whipped her head in the direction of the bell's chime as something occurred to her. "Oh God, I better get the door before Tohsaka answers it!"

Obviously, Sakura would be wondering what on Earth Rin was doing at the Emiya estate if the latter answered the door. As Shira had pointed out to Rin in the dojo, a cover story—and a convincing one at that—needed to be made. If it was left up to Rin, Shira wasn't sure if the older girl would handle the situation in a smooth, neat fashion. If Shira answered the door, though, she'd be able to break the news to Sakura about Rin staying at her house as tactfully as she could.

Again, she would have to come up with a cover story, but she supposed she'd have to cross that bridge when she came to it.

At present, Shira turned back to Saber. "Look, Saber, I think it would be best if you stayed here for now."

"You want me to hide?" Saber asked.

"Well, kind of," Shira said hesitantly. "It's just that people like Sakura and Fuji-nee know nothing about magic, so—"

"So you think the best course of action would be if I stayed here until I am needed," Saber finished.

"That would be great." Shira nodded, grateful that he understood. "I'll try to sneak you some breakfast if I can," she added before she turned around to rush as fast as she could to the front door.

Unfortunately, by the time she made it to the entrance, Rin was standing in the doorway in front of Sakura, whose mouth was open in shock.

"Oh, good morning, Sakura," Rin greeted her cheerfully. "What a coincidence running into you here."

"Tohsaka-senpai?" Sakura looked over Rin's shoulder to turn her confused gaze to Shira. "Senpai, what is she doing here?"

Shira chuckled humorlessly. "Believe me, I asked the same question. Sorry to spring this onto you so suddenly, but certain...events have happened, so Tohsaka will be living here for awhile."

"You do realize what this means, right, Sakura?" Rin cut in, still using that almost falsely cheerful tone.

"Realize what?" Sakura asked, her eyes back on Rin.

"It seems you've been looking after Shira for a while now, but that'll no longer be necessary. It's best if you stay away from here; you'll just be a bother."

Shira smacked herself in the face at Rin's words. _Seriously, Tohsaka, what are you playing at?_

Sakura just blinked as if she couldn't believe it, either. After a pause, she pressed her lips together. "I don't understand."

Now it was Rin's turn to be confused. "...What?"

"I said," Sakura began, her voice surprisingly firm, "I don't understand what you're talking about." She calmly brushed past Rin.

"H-hey, Sakura!" Rin exclaimed.

Sakura continued walking. "I'll make breakfast. That's okay with you, right, Senpai?"

"Sure," came Shira's reply as she bemusedly watched Sakura leave. "That was...unexpected," she commented to Rin, who had shut the door. "I've never seen Sakura snap back like that."

Rin bit her lip. "The chances of this house becoming a battleground are high," she said, her voice low. "I was just trying to warn her to stay away."

Shira raised an eyebrow. " _That_ was what you were trying to do? Quite frankly, Tohsaka, I thought you were just being mean."

"Hey!" Rin scowled.

"I'm just saying," Shira said, raising her hand in defense.

* * *

It wasn't long before Taiga arrived. As Shira expected, the older woman was incredibly befuddled to find Rin there, but Rin managed to come up with a story about staying at the Emiya estate while her own house was being renovated. During breakfast, Shira made sure to get double the amount of food she normally ate, as well as hide an extra pair of chopsticks in her shirt. She managed to sneak out of the dining room with her plate as the meal was drawing to a close.

"Here," she said once she opened the door to Saber's room, handing him the plate and chopsticks. "I hope this is fine."

"It will do nicely, Shira, thank you," Saber answered, accepting the food.

"I better get going pretty soon." Shira turned to leave.

"Shira," Saber's voice stopped her and she glanced back at him, "before you go, I want you to promise me something."

"What is it?" Shira questioned.

"I wish this were not the case," Saber continued, "but my link to you is tenuous at best. If you are in danger, I might not be able to sense it until it's too late. If you find yourself in a situation that can potentially be dangerous, I want you to summon me by using a Command Seal."

"All right," Shira agreed. "Now let me get that futon for you before I get ready for school."

* * *

"We can't do much at the moment," Rin was saying as she and Shira walked to school. "Aside from Ilyasviel, we don't know who the other Masters are, so we'll have to wait for one of them to take the initiative. Right now, you'll have to go through life as if you're not a Master. Hide your Command Seals, be home before dark, and avoid places where you could get ambushed."

"Got it." Shira nodded.

Rin frowned. "You also really ought to have Saber with you as much as possible."

"Well, he can't take spirit form," Shira pointed out as the girls reached the school building, "so that puts a damper on that front. And I can't take him to school; he wouldn't be allowed in. Besides, would a Master really be stupid enough to start a fight in broad daylight with a bunch of witnesses around?"

"Emiya!"

Shira and Rin turned their heads to see Issei hurrying toward them.

"What are you doing with Tohsaka?!" His horrified gaze darted between the two girls.

"Hello to you, too," Rin said sarcastically.

Issei ignored her, grabbing Shira by the shoulder and pulling her behind him as if she were a damsel in need of protecting. "Stay away from her! She'll corrupt you!"

Shira almost laughed despite herself at how dramatic he was being. "Issei, you're making Tohsaka sound like she's some kind of cosmic horror. Believe it or not, we've kind of become friends."

This did not placate Issei. "Emiya, I implore you to get better female friends!"

"See you later, Shira," Rin said nonchalantly as she entered the school building.

* * *

The day passed as normally as it ever did. Nothing odd or unusual happened; even so, as Shira sat through her classes, she paid only half attention to the teachers. She found herself playing and replaying the brief conversation she'd had with Saber right after Sakura had rang the doorbell. What was the last thing she'd said to him before rushing to the door?

_"I'll try to sneak you some breakfast if I can."_

Shira mentally cringed. Spiritual entity or not, Saber looked just as human as anyone, and here she was, treating him like some kind of pet she was hiding in the house.

 _I really hope I didn't offend him,_ she thought.

At last, classes were over. Shira did not wait to see if Rin wanted to walk home with her, but went straight back to the Emiya estate, eager for a chance to talk to Saber.

"I'm home," she called after she'd entered the house. "Saber?"

She went to his room, where she found him beneath the covers of his futon, apparently asleep. She gently slid the door closed behind her and slowly walked towards the futon, taking care not to wake him.

Shira knelt beside Saber, the latter wearing a peaceful expression on his face.

The redhead smiled slightly as she watched him. "And here I was thinking I needed to hurry home so we could talk," she muttered to herself.

Saber's eyes opened. "What do you want to talk about?"

Shira jumped a little, startled. "I thought you were asleep."

"I sensed your presence when you crossed the threshold," Saber explained, sitting up.

"How are your wounds doing?" Shira asked.

"The wound I got from Lancer is still not fully healed," Saber admitted. "Nonetheless, I have recovered most of my strength. I was able to sleep for most of the day."

Shira frowned. "You've been in here since this morning?"

"Yes," the blond replied, turning to face her. "When one is not in combat and sleep can be had, it is best to take full advantage of it. In any case, since I am not getting any mana from you, I need to conserve as much of my magical energy as possible."

There was nothing accusatory in Saber's voice, but Shira still had to resist a wince at the fact that she wasn't even powerful enough to properly support her Servant. An unfortunate side effect of being an amateur magus, and the accidental summoning probably didn't help.

"So," she began, "does sleeping help in replenishing your mana?"

"I'm not entirely certain," Saber answered, "but I at least know that I do not use up any mana while I sleep."

Before Shira could think of anything else to say, Saber's eyes went to the door. "Someone's approaching."

Shira spared a glance at the door. "It's probably just Sakura or Tohsaka."

"If that is all, then I will remain here until needed."

"Saber..." Shira's voice trailed off as she looked back at him. The feeling that she was treating him like a caged, exotic pet had suddenly increased.

"Is something wrong, Shira?" Saber questioned.

Shira smiled ruefully. "Not really. I guess I'm just feeling a little bad about hiding you, is all."

"Don't be." A simple, reassuring smile appeared on Saber's face. "I am perfectly fine here."

 _But you haven't set foot out of this room all day,_ Shira wanted to protest. _You shouldn't be isolated like this._ However, at the sight of Saber's smile—was this the first time she'd seen him truly smile?—all ability to argue left her.

Instead, she gave another smile, and it felt forced because it was. "Okay."

* * *

After leaving Saber's room, Shira went to the kitchen to see that Rin and Sakura had arrived from a trip to the grocery store. Shira spent the next hour or so preparing dinner, and Taiga burst into the house just as the table was being set.

Soon enough, dinner was served. Shira was silent as she put some meatballs on her plate, hardly listening as Taiga gushed over the food and Sakura and Rin made small talk. She found herself glancing to her left, where an empty cushion rested. In her mind's eye, she saw Saber sitting on the cushion and quietly eating a bowl of rice; the mental image was gone as soon as it had appeared.

Shira cast her gaze to the floor. _Saber might be okay with not eating with everyone—with being cut off from the rest of the world—but I'm not._

Her mind made up, Shira abruptly got to her feet.

"What's wrong, Shira?" Taiga asked. "Do you need to use the bathroom?"

"No, but could you guys wait a sec? There's something I need to do." Without waiting for anyone to reply, Shira left the dining room and headed down the hall. She went to her room.

"Saber? Come on, we gotta go," Shira said as she opened the door to his room.

"Why?" Saber wanted to know as he let Shira help him up. "Is there an emergency?"

"Nope; I just want to introduce you to everyone," Shira replied.

Saber frowned, obviously displeased. "What are you thinking? Have you lost your mind?"

Shira wouldn't be deterred. "It's not right for me to hide you."

"But this morning, you said—"

"I know what I said," Shira interrupted. "Listen to what I'm saying now. Let's just go out there and wing it, all right?"

Saber had little choice but to follow as Shira took his hand again and practically dragged him out of his room. When they made it to the dining room, Shira dropped Saber's hand.

"I should've done this earlier," Shira said to Taiga, Sakura, and Rin, "but I'd like to introduce you to Saber. He'll be living here for a while, too."

Rin initially looked quite blank as Shira began to speak, but presently settled into an expression that was politely puzzled, and both Sakura and Taiga were looking baffled, the latter more so than the former.

"Shira—" Saber tried to say.

Shira cut him off before he could get any further. "Saber, you can sit next to me. If you're going to be living here, then you're going to be eating with us, too."

"Are you sure about this?" Saber asked doubtfully.

"Absolutely," Shira declared. She sat herself down and picked up her chopsticks, suddenly very hungry.

But before Shira could even bite into a meatball, Taiga chose that moment to spring up, her bafflement replaced by outrage.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, YOUNG LADY?!"

The chopsticks fell from Shira's grip as she covered her ears to block Taiga's roar.

Taiga lowered her voice to a more or less acceptable volume. "Shira Emiya, when I told you to get a boyfriend, I did _not_ mean you should get a boyfriend and have him live with you!"

Shira uncovered her ears. _What the hell?_

"Fuji-nee, just what are you talking about?" Shira demanded incredulously. "Saber's not my boyfriend. He's a boy, he's a friend, and yes, he'll be staying here, but that does _not_ make him my boyfriend!"

"Could've fooled me," Rin muttered.

Shira whipped her head in Rin's direction. "What was that?!"

"What else do you call it when a young man and woman are living in the same house?" Taiga snapped.

"It's not like that!" Shira protested. "Saber's just—"

Taiga interrupted her. "Where did you find this foreigner anyway?"

"I didn't find him; he's..." Shira scrambled for the next couple of seconds for anything to say, "he's an old family friend."

"An old family friend?" Clearly, Taiga wasn't buying it.

"That seems hard to believe." And neither was Sakura.

"It's true!" Shira insisted. "I don't know all the details, but he somehow used Dad's old connections to get here."

"Do you honestly expect us to believe that silly fairytale? There's no way Kiritsugu had connections to anyone outside of—" Taiga suddenly stopped, looking thoughtful. "Well, actually..."

Shira smiled triumphantly. "See?"

Taiga went back to being angry. "Doesn't matter; it's highly inappropriate for an unmarried man and woman to live together!" She lifted her furious gaze up to Saber, who was still standing. "Hey, you! Fess up; what are you here for? And if you even _think_ about taking advantage of Shira, I'll—"

"Enough," Saber interrupted; in contrast to Taiga's fiery tone, his voice was like ice. He leveled a frosty stare at the brown-haired woman. "The only reason I am here is because Kiritsugu wished it. It was his request that I protect Shira from any and all enemies."

 _Well, the best lies are often based on the truth,_ Shira thought as Taiga began to deflate. But before she could truly relax, Taiga straightened up.

"Fine, then. If you're here to protect her, then I say we find out just how good you are," she declared.

Shira stifled a groan.

* * *

All too soon, everyone had gone to the dojo. Shira, Sakura, and Rin were sitting off to the side, while Saber and Taiga, the latter of whom having a shinai in hand, were standing about a few feet away from each other.

"The only way I'll allow you to stay is by the slim chance you beat me," Taiga said. "But if you lose, I'm sending your sorry butt packing."

"I will oblige," Saber said calmly, "though I fail to see the point in this exercise."

"'Fail to see the point'?!" Taiga repeated, scowling. "Haven't you heard of a lion tossing their cubs in a ditch just to ferret out the weak?"

Shira shook her head. "This is ridiculous."

"Pipe down, Shira!" Taiga snapped. "I'm only doing this for your own safety!"

"Well, then," Saber said, "if I only need to prove I can protect Shira, this will not be a problem."

Taiga bristled. "You're walking on confidence, aren't ya?" She lifted up her shinai. "All right, pretty boy, let's see how long that lasts!" She charged forward.

"Sensei!" Sakura gasped.

Shira couldn't quite blame her. Taiga liked to brag that she was a fifth degree kendo, but Saber's skill in swordplay was on a whole different level. So it came as no surprise to Shira when Saber merely stood there as Taiga ran towards him, then quickly grabbed the shinai out of her hands before she could so much as touch him.

Taiga spent the next few seconds staring at her empty hands, as if not believing what had just happened.

"Is it safe to assume you are convinced now?" Saber asked, lowering his hand on the shinai so that he now grasped the hilt.

But Taiga only chuckled darkly, whipping out another shinai from behind her back. "Oh, this is just getting started!"

She charged forward again as Saber held out his shinai in front of him. Suddenly, a burst of smoke appeared from Saber's shinai; the smoke cleared to reveal colorful bits of paper, revealing the "shinai" as a fake.

"Say your prayers!" Taiga cried. She was now in striking distance—but in the next couple of seconds, Saber had let go of the fake shinai and disarmed Taiga again.

The woman stared at her "opponent," completely flabbergasted.

Saber began walking towards her. "If you wish to continue this, I would be happy to oblige. However, I would like to assume that you are skilled enough to realize when you are outmatched."

Taiga flinched back as Saber got closer. Her face crumpled, her thunderstruck expression replaced by abject misery.

"Some weirdo's stealing Shira away!" she wailed.

Shira could only blink as Taiga proceeded to sob. _Just who does she think is the weirdo here?_

* * *

It took the better part of two hours, but Shira and Saber were able to finally convince Taiga to not only let Saber stay, but that there would be "absolutely no funny business" between the two of them ( _Not that I'd want to, anyway,_ Shira told herself). Afterward, Taiga left to take Sakura home, leaving Shira, Saber, and Rin standing out in one of the estate's hallways.

"You know, you didn't have to go to so much trouble," Rin informed Shira.

The redhead frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Servants are Servants," Rin said, as if that explained everything. "There's no need to treat them like they're human beings." She sighed. "But I guess there's no use telling you that."

Shira, who didn't feel much like arguing right now, remained silent as Rin walked off, presumably to the guest room she was staying in.

"I have to agree with Rin," Saber spoke, causing Shira to look at him. "Shira, why did you feel so compelled to introduce me to everyone? Having them know I exist puts us at a disadvantage. The better strategy would be for me to remain in my room."

"Not for me, it wouldn't," Shira said. "I felt like you were caged inside that room—you were in the house, but still alone. Servant or not, that's no way to treat someone. Besides, there's more to life than just strategy."

And with that, she turned around to walk to her room, not waiting for Saber's response.

* * *

Even though it meant skipping out on her usual magic training, Shira decided to go to bed earlier than she normally did; the drama that Taiga caused over Saber living at the estate, however temporarily, had left her exhausted. She quickly changed into her pajamas, crawled underneath her futon's blankets, and was asleep before her head had hit the pillow.

The next morning, Shira woke up feeling refreshed. After getting dressed and grooming herself, she went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

A few minutes later, heavy footfalls could be heard along the floor. Shira looked up to see Rin stumbling groggily into the room.

"Good morning, Tohsaka," she greeted uneasily as she took in the state the other girl was in. Rin was slumped forward as though hung-over, her eyes were bleary with sleep, her hair was mussed, and there were several wrinkles in her yellow nightgown. Yet another strike against Rin's school idol image.

"Sheesh, you sure get up early," Rin croaked. "Ugh...where's the bathroom?"

"Down that hallway," Shira said, gesturing with one hand. She looked back to focus on her cooking as Rin mumbled a thanks and left the kitchen, yawning all the while.

More than half an hour later, Rin was fully awake, Saber had gotten up, Sakura and Taiga made their arrival, and the morning meal was ready. Compared to how dinner had gone last night, breakfast was a peaceful, even lighthearted affair. Taiga made no mention about Saber's current living arrangements, for which Shira was thankful. Instead, Taiga was content to wolf down as much food as she could, despite Shira's warnings that the woman could choke.

"You worry too much, Shira," Taiga said airily, dismissing her ward with a wave of her hand. "I have to eat this much or I won't make it until lunchtime. Otherwise, I'd end up like Sakura, munching on onigiri after her morning archery practice."

Sakura flushed in embarrassment. "You know about that?"

"Well, yeah," Shira said. "You've been making an extra serving of rice for a while now."

"Sakura," Saber spoke for the first time since breakfast started, "do you ever think of anything besides food?"

Sakura seemed to blush even more furiously as Saber addressed her. "O-of course I do!" She quickly grabbed the nearby remote and turned on the TV.

"Over fifty victims were discovered before dawn today and taken to the hospital," the news reporter said, the screen showing a tall building in the background, as well as a headline that read, _Another Gas Leak in New Town!_ "Authorities have been unable to determine why the gas detectors did not activate when the leak occurred."

"A gas leak, huh?" Rin commented. Her tone was casual, even careless, but a quick, sideways glance at her told Shira that Rin was giving the news report her full attention.

Shira found herself wondering if all these "gas leaks" were more than just a string of unfortunate accidents. And if so, did Rin know anything about them?

* * *

It happened suddenly and without any warning.

The second Shira made to enter the school's gate, a wave of nausea overtook her as terrible pain coiled around her heart. It was as though a large, powerful hand had reached inside her chest in an attempt to squeeze every bit of life out of her.

She doubled over, though she wasn't aware she had moved at all. Her vision swam. The air was so thick she could hardly breathe.

And then, the moment was gone as quickly as it had begun. Shira's breath came out in pants as she dragged clean air into her lungs.

"What's the matter?" Rin asked from behind her.

"I...I don't know," Shira admitted as she straightened up. "I just felt queasy all of a sudden. The air seemed different...sticky, I think."

Rin frowned. "It's a barrier. Someone—a Master, no doubt—has placed a barrier around the school."

"And that's a problem?" Shira guessed.

"Of course it's a problem! This barrier doesn't seem to be complete yet, but if we don't do anything, it'll drain the mana of everyone on campus."

" _What_?!" Shira cried out, not bothering to hide her horrified disbelief.

"Keep your voice down," Rin scolded in a harsh whisper. "I said _if_ we don't do anything."

"Well, we can't just sit by and let everyone get killed. But what can we do?"

"We'll have to talk about it later," Rin decided. "Meet me on the roof at lunch, Shira."

"Hey, wait..." But Shira's voice trailed off helplessly as Rin walked into the school building, leaving her alone with a mixture of panic at what this barrier was capable of doing and anger at whoever had set it up in the first place.

* * *

"Issei?" Shira poked her head into the student council room after morning classes were over to find her friend sitting at the table with his head in his arms.

The redhead took a seat. "What's wrong? Did you not get enough sleep last night?"

"It's not that," Issei answered sleepily, lifting his head just enough to peer at Shira. "But lately, no matter how much sleep I get, I still feel tired, so if I get a chance to nap, I take it."

"That's, uh, really weird."

"Mm-hmm." Issei, who took no notice of the quaver in Shira's voice, set his head back on the table, softly snoring.

Someone knocked on the open door, and a deep, calm voice broke in. "Is Ryudou available?"

Shira turned her head to see Kuzuki standing in the doorway. He drifted his gaze to Issei; Shira had to lightly nudge the boy in the arm to get him to straighten up in his seat.

"Sensei." Issei quickly adjusted his glasses.

"Regarding the student from the archery club this morning," Kuzuki began.

"Yes?" Issei prompted.

"Apparently, she failed to return home as well."

Issei let out a sharp intake of breath. "What about Matou?"

"Not here today," Kuzuki said. "At this point, we don't know if this is related to the other incidents that have been happening in town. I would appreciate it if you kept this under wraps for now; as far as anyone knows, those kids are simply out sick."

"Yes, sir," Issei agreed.

"That is all. Sorry I interrupted."

As Kuzuki left, Shira turned back to Issei. "What's he talking about? What happened with the archery club?"

"Oh, right," Issei mumbled. "I guess you wouldn't have heard. This does concern you to a certain extent, so I should probably fill you in. Ayako Mitsuzuri has been missing since yesterday, and a student came forward and said he found her talking to Shinji Matou last night. And now Matou is absent as well."

Shira looked away, pursing her lips. Was it possible that the Master who set up this barrier had taken Ayako and Shinji for whatever reason? If this particular Master was willing to sacrifice a whole school just to get mana, then he or she would have no qualms with kidnapping. Shira made a mental note to tell Rin about this. And speaking of Rin...

"Well, enjoy your nap, Issei," Shira said as she stood up and left just as Issei resumed his snoring.

Before heading to the roof, Shira went to the cafeteria to buy some lunch, as well as two coffees. With that done, she went upstairs to the rooftop, shivering in the cold air as she walked over to where Rin was standing.

"Thanks," Rin said after accepting the coffee Shira handed to her, then ruined it as she continued. "I guess if you're not good for anything else, then at least you're thoughtful."

She opened the can and took a sip, grimacing as she did so. "Get milk tea next time, though."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Shira said, rolling her eyes. She quickly sobered, however. "So, about this Master that's set up the barrier...do you have any idea on who it could be?"

"I can't pinpoint exactly who it is yet," Rin admitted, "but I've sensed his presence at school for awhile. All I really know is that this Master is a nasty piece of work. They'd have to be if they're willing to use a barrier of this magnitude just to strengthen their own Servant."

"And how would the missing students fit into this?" Shira wondered.

Rin raised an eyebrow in question. "What missing students?"

"I heard from Issei that Mitsuzuri and Shinji Matou are absent," Shira explained. "The official story is that they're sick, but it looks suspicious that they'd go missing a day or two after the barrier's set up, especially with another Master at school."

Rin nodded slowly, frowning a bit. "That is true. What are we supposed to do about it?"

Shira sipped her coffee thoughtfully. "We could ask around after classes are over. Or we could just poke around the school, see if we can't find anything."

"That's a good idea," Rin conceded. "If we're lucky, we may find a clue as to who this Master is."

It was also pretty much the _only_ idea, but Shira refrained from commenting on that.

* * *

Shira hoped Rin had better luck than she did.

Once school was done for the day, Shira had gone to Sakura's classroom to ask about Shinji's whereabouts, but the younger girl said that neither she nor anyone else knew where he was. Shira spent some time asking students if they had seen Ayako, but she only heard the same thing: that Ayako was sick.

"Shira?"

Startled, the redhead looked up, belatedly realizing that she was standing in the hallway near a flight of stairs with Rin approaching her.

"Find anything?" Rin asked.

"Nothing." Shira frowned, frustration marring her features. "Every person I've talked to seems to think Mitsuzuri and Matou just caught the flu or something."

"Same with me," Rin confessed, "but it does give us some advantage. After all, the less they suspect, the less likely they'll believe something unnatural is going on."

Shira only shrugged; she supposed Rin was right.

"Anyway," the black-haired girl went on, "it looks like the only thing we can do now is wait for this Master to come to us. I mean, we could delay the barrier, but—"

She abruptly stopped talking as a scream pierced the air.

"Someone's here." Without waiting for Rin to respond, Shira took off running downstairs, following the sound of the scream.

"Hey, wait up!" Rin's voice called from behind; Shira didn't have to look back to see that the other girl was running as well.

They ran until they made it to the first floor. Shira rushed to open the nearby double doors to find that a female student was lying on the floor. She was unconscious, but otherwise appeared unharmed.

Shira knelt down to get a better look at the girl. "I'm guessing it's too much to hope that she just passed out?"

"You guessed right," Rin clarified. "Whoever did this tried to drain the life from her. They probably couldn't wait for the barrier to do the job for them."

A shudder went through Shira's body; that would certainly explain the apparent kidnappings, and yet...

"There's not a scratch on her," Shira said out loud.

"Believe me," Rin said grimly, "she might be fine externally, but internally, most of her has been consumed. If we leave her like this, she'll die. Step back; I can help with this." Rin got to her knees by the girl's side, brushing Shira aside.

Shira got up and stood aside as Rin held out her arm and wordlessly chanted a spell, a red jewel resting on her palm. She couldn't help noticing the look of intense focus on Rin's face.

 _Somehow, I feel like I've seen that expression before,_ Shira thought.

Rin grunted in frustration. "I can't concentrate! Shira, shut that door, will you?"

Shira was broken out of her thoughts and moved to do what Rin asked (well, more like demanded). Just as she was about to close the door, though, a nail-like dagger suddenly flew through the air—right in Rin's direction.

In a burst of instinct, Shira raised her arm—and let out a short scream as the dagger was driven straight into her arm.


	6. The Lady in Black

Saber stood out on the porch of the Emiya estate, watching the sun slowly sink into the western horizon. Shira had yet to return home, and although he could not sense anything through the link that bonded him to her, Saber had the feeling that something was wrong.

"Hello, Saber!" Taiga chirped from behind him.

"Good evening, Taiga," Saber greeted courteously, turning to face her. By now, Taiga had quite forgotten the grievances she'd had about him residing at the estate (although he still did not quite know what Taiga had meant about him being Shira's "boyfriend"; while the Grail system had granted him sufficient knowledge of this era when he was summoned, he was no expert on such modern terminology) and was being perfectly friendly towards him.

Presently, a small frown came to Saber's face. "Shira should be home by now. I'm wondering if something has happened to her."

"Oh, she's probably just working," Taiga said, waving her hand dismissively. "On to something more important: What do you think Sakura will be cooking for dinner?"

"I have been smelling what I believe is the scent of frying tofu," Saber replied, deciding to go along with the topic change. And he did have to admit that the smells coming from the kitchen were quite delicious—a good sign when it came to food. "I suppose that this is a specialty dish of Sakura's?"

"Right you are!" Taiga giggled, then ran back inside, loudly asking Sakura about dinner.

With the brief conversation now over, Saber turned his gaze back to the sky. Taiga might believe that Shira was all right, but as the minutes dragged by with still no sign of her (or Rin, for that matter, but she wasn't his Master and therefore not his top priority), Saber was more convinced than ever that Shira was in danger.

But if that was the case, why hadn't she summoned him yet?

* * *

Rin was broken out of her concentration as Shira staggered back a bit, the redhead's white sleeve now stained with blood.

"Shira, your arm!" Rin exclaimed, suddenly noticing the hole that had punctured through the younger girl's right arm when the dagger hit her.

"Tohsaka, you take care of that girl," Shira said tersely, trying to ignore the pain as she stumbled out of the room and outside the school building.

 _What the hell was_ that _all about?_ Shira thought as she hurried through the schoolyard, cradling her injured arm. She stopped in her tracks, looking around.

 _They're still here,_ she thought, sensing the dark magical energy nearby. She closed her eyes, giving herself a few seconds to pinpoint where the energy was strongest—there, behind the archery club.

With that settled, Shira took off towards the forest that was just behind the archery dojo. Right before entering the forest, though, she picked a branch up off the ground and reinforced it. At least then she wouldn't be completely defenseless.

She had barely made it ten paces into the woods when she heard the sound of derisive laughter.

"Who's there?" Shira called out, slowing down but not daring to stop.

The only answer she received was more laughter—the sound was masculine and unpleasantly familiar.

"Is that you, Matou?" Shira glanced around; unfortunately, with the setting sun in her eyes, she couldn't be sure if Shinji was there or not. Even so...

"Aren't you supposed to be out sick today?"

Shira yelped as her right arm suddenly jerked at an odd angle. A second later, someone leapt out at her from the bare trees and, with the sound of a chain whistling through the air, sliced at her neck with a dagger. Shira jumped backward and fell with another pained yelp, pressing a hand to the side of her neck. She withdrew her hand to find it damp with blood, but luckily, the cut didn't seem too deep.

The redhead got to her feet in time to see her attacker land on the ground in front of her. The sun silhouetted the figure: tall, womanly, _very_ long hair, and undoubtedly a Servant. Wordlessly, the woman leapt into the trees; Shira tensed as she heard her opponent go from one branch to the next. A few seconds later, the woman lunged at her, and Shira wasted no time in lifting the reinforced branch. She was able to block the dagger coming her way, but the force of the blow knocked her to the ground.

Shira stood up and backed into a tree as the woman disappeared into the branches again. Was the Servant retreating? _No,_ Shira thought grimly, _she just wants to toy with me before she kills me._ As much as she hated it, she knew she couldn't face a Servant and live; the instant that woman decided to do away with her, it would be all over.

 _Wait a minute,_ Shira realized, _I can use a Command Seal to summon Saber._ It was just yesterday morning that he told her to summon him whenever she was in danger. Well, she was presently at the mercy of an unknown Servant—that was more than enough reason to summon Saber, right?

But as soon as that thought crossed Shira's mind, a horrifyingly vivid mental image appeared.

 _Saber was bleeding, Saber was struggling to fight, Saber was_ about to die _—_

 _No!_ Shira thought, her heart suddenly racing. She couldn't do it; whatever promise she made to Saber, she couldn't bring him into a situation where he could die. Besides, she might be at a disadvantage, but she had a weapon and she was still able to move; she wouldn't dare drag Saber into this until she truly had no other option.

"I'm surprised." The Servant's voice—a feminine voice sounding as rich as dark chocolate and as deadly as poison—echoed throughout the forest. "Aren't you going to use a Command Seal and have your Servant rescue you?"

"Ha!" Shira scoffed, hoping she sounded a lot more confident than she felt; she quickly scanned the branches overhead as she continued talking. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm a big girl who can handle herself. And those Command Seals are precious; why waste one on something as trivial as this?"

"That bravado of yours is quite charming," the woman spoke, "but it will only get you killed."

Shira grunted. "Stop hiding and show yourself!"

She once again heard the sound of chains, and her injured arm jerked forward, seemingly of its own accord.

"I suppose it is bad form to attack a Master without their Servant," the woman mused out loud. "Be it as it may, I will make your death as painless as I possibly can."

Shira turned slightly as she heard a rustling, finally locating the Servant—dressed in a form-fitting black dress with the sunset's rays glinting on her floor-length lavender hair—standing several feet away from her. The woman threw her chained dagger towards Shira, who blocked it effortlessly. The woman disappeared into the trees again.

"Well, guess I was worried for nothing," Shira taunted. "Compared to other Servants I've run into, you're not even a threat."

And with that, Shira ran as fast as she could through the forest. It wasn't long before she saw an end to the trees.

"Almost there," she muttered to herself; just a few more feet and she'd be—

"Actually," the woman's voice cut through the air, "that's as far as you go."

Chains clinked, and Shira suddenly found herself pulled back; she let out a small yell as she fell unceremoniously onto the grass, landing on her stomach.

"There is no escaping," the woman said as she approached the fallen girl. "You've been my prisoner from the very beginning."

"What—ow!" Shira's injured arm suddenly shot up in a twisted parody of a student eagerly raising their hand to answer a question. "What are you talking about?!" She turned her head upward to get a look at her arm as the Servant continued speaking.

"My, you're not too bright. The weapon I drove into your arm back inside that classroom is a spike attached to my chain."

Shira rolled onto her side. _That thing is still there?_ she thought, slightly stunned as she watched the dagger embedded in her arm—which had disappeared soon after she was wounded—slowly reappear. The Servant gave the chain a violent pull, causing Shira, who couldn't help but shriek, to hang in midair by a tree branch.

Shira dropped the reinforced branch and used her free hand to grab onto the dagger. If she could just get the dagger out of her arm, she'd be able to fall to the ground and run like hell. She gritted her teeth as she tried pulling on the dagger, pain shooting up her injured arm.

"Well, aren't you brave?" the woman asked mockingly. "Do you always choose the most painful option available?"

Shira continued pulling at the dagger, ignoring the woman.

When the black-clad Servant next spoke, coolness had replaced the mockery. "By the way, I would like to address a little comment you made suggesting that I was inferior to other Servants. You may want to reevaluate that statement."

The redhead stopped pulling on the dagger long enough to glare at her, but it was more than enough time for the Servant to throw another dagger. Before it could hit Shira, though, a series of black energy blasts was shot through the air behind the woman. She turned around, distracted, and the energy blasts hit their true target: the chain holding Shira captive.

The chain broke, sending Shira falling into a heap on the ground. As she slowly got to her knees, she vaguely heard the sound of the Servant leaping away into the trees, followed by hurrying footsteps.

"Shira!" came Rin's voice as she approached. "Are you alright?"

Shira gingerly held out her arm for Rin to examine. "I'd be lying if I said I was."

Rin took the redhead's pulse, muttering a spell. As soon as she finished, the pain from Shira's wound lessened slightly, and the next few minutes were spent making a makeshift cast for her arm using a couple of handkerchiefs.

"Who was that woman?" Rin asked at present.

"A Servant," Shira replied.

"Did she have her Master with her?"

Shira frowned. "Maybe, but I can't say for sure." Even now, she wasn't certain if Shinji had been there as the Servant attacked; for all she knew, she could've hallucinated hearing that irritating laugh of his.

"At least now we know that Servant must be the one who put up the barrier and attacked that girl," Shira added after a small pause. "By the way, how's she doing?"

"She'll live," Rin said simply, straightening up. "Now let's get back to your place before my spell wears off. If that wound gets infected and you die, I'm not gonna be the one responsible for it."

* * *

As much to Shira's surprise as Rin's, even after the painkilling spell wore off, the wound on the former's arm was almost completely healed by the time the girls returned to the Emiya estate. Shira thought it was rather convenient, but Rin didn't think she should rely on this mysterious healing factor too much.

"If it is Saber that's healing you," Rin said as they ate some food left over from the dinner Sakura had made that evening, "then it's his mana that's depleted in order to save you. And since you're not doing anything to replenish it—"

"Yes, I get it," Shira interrupted before Rin could continue. "No more crazy stunts."

After the late meal was over, Shira went to her room, opening Saber's door a crack to find that her Servant was asleep. Deciding that maybe it'd be a better idea to talk in the morning, Shira made to close the door when Saber's voice stopped her.

"You're late."

"Yeah." The redhead couldn't help but smile sheepishly. "I'm sorry if I worried you, Saber."

"Shira..." Saber was tempted to ask Shira why she had broken her promise, but it _was_ late. He supposed he could confront her about it the next morning just as well as right now. So instead of demanding explanations, he said the only truthful thing he could think of.

"I'm just glad you're safe."

Warmth suddenly blossomed in Shira's chest—as well as her face—upon hearing those words, though she wasn't sure why. Wordlessly, she closed the door to allow Saber to go back to sleep, then headed out to the shed for her magic training.

About an hour or so later, Shira left the shed to go to her room for some sleep when she heard footsteps approaching. She involuntarily tensed at the sound; before she could demand who it was, the footsteps stopped in front of her and the figure was revealed to be Archer.

"Oh, it's you." Shira felt herself relax, but only a little. She belatedly realized that this was the first time she had seen Rin's Servant since the night Saber was summoned.

"Yes, it's me," Archer agreed, a sardonic smile crossing her lips.

And just like that, the tenseness in Shira's body had returned. She wasn't sure why—Archer had never attacked her, had never even spoken to her until now—but she found herself disliking this woman, from her shoulder-length white hair to her black, steel-toed shoes.

"Rin has had me on watch duty," Archer continued dispassionately, "but mark my words, I will put an end to this ridiculous alliance once my wound heals. In the meantime, I'm saddled with being a spectator."

Shira frowned. "Feel free to continue being a spectator; I have nothing to say to you."

"Now there's something we can agree on." Archer smirked at her own comment. "Even so, there is something I can't overlook. I heard you didn't use a Command Seal during your fight with Rider."

"What about it?" Shira asked, not caring if she sounded rude. _And how does she know that Servant's class...?_

Archer glared slightly. "You're foolish, I can tell as much, but I don't think you're so foolish as to think you can take on a Servant on your own. So why didn't you save yourself some trouble and summon Saber?"

"That's none of your business!" Shira snapped, deciding that her initial dislike was right on the money.

"Never mind; I can hazard a guess." Archer continued as if Shira hadn't spoken. "You thought it would be nobler to take care of the situation yourself. Heaven forbid there should be anyone getting hurt or even killed." Her glare deepened. "You disgust me."

"And you're a self-righteous bitch," Shira shot back, "but you don't see me complaining."

Again, Archer spoke as if the redhead hadn't said anything. "I pity Saber for having a Master as immature as you."

Shira's face flushed with anger. "Shut up! The less Saber has to stick his neck on the line for me, the better."

Archer raised an eyebrow. "And does Saber feel the same way about this?"

Shira opened her mouth to retort, but closed it as she remembered exactly how Saber had reacted to her taking Berserker's blow for him.

_"I would prefer my Master to not do what you did yesterday."_

"Tell me," Archer said presently, turning her back on Shira, "do you truly think you can end the Holy Grail War without ever having to fight?"

Shira's fist clenched. "I never said that. When the time comes, I'll fight!"

"Oh? Will you do that without killing anyone?"

"So what if I do?"

Archer turned her head in Shira's direction. "You're hopelessly naïve, little girl." ( _"Little girl"?!_ Shira thought furiously.) "The more you cling to your overly idealistic notions, the more devastating it'll be for you when those ideals succumb to the real world. The path you will take is not what it seems. Knowing that, are you still willing to go down that same road?"

And with that cryptic question, Archer disappeared into spirit form, leaving Shira wondering just what on Earth that woman was trying to say.


	7. Taking Measures

"Senpai?" Sakura opened Shira's door. "Breakfast is ready whenever you are."

Shira, who had been smoothing out wrinkles from her uniform, glanced up. "All right; I'll be down in a minute."

"Will Saber be joining us?" Sakura asked.

"Probably not," Shira said. "He was up pretty late last night, so I figured I'd let him sleep in."

Sakura nodded slowly. "Okay, then. Well, hurry before the food gets cold."

As Sakura left to go back to the dining room, Shira let her gaze drift to Saber's door, remembering their brief conversation the night before.

"Shira...I'm just glad you're safe," he had said. And although she did feel a little guilty about making him worry, the thought that he cared enough about her to be concerned over her wellbeing was enough to make her smile.

 _Well, it looks like Saber's not all ice,_ Shira thought. Granted, she had known that before, ever since the first morning she had spent with him—if not upon the realization that he'd wanted to protect her during his fight with Berserker, then definitely after that oddly vulnerable moment he'd had during their argument about his sleeping arrangements—but it was still nice to get a reminder every now and then.

She turned towards her door, about ready for breakfast, when the sound of Saber's door opening made her turn back. There Saber stood, dressed in his shirt, tie, and pants and regarding Shira silently.

"Oh, hey, Saber," Shira began. "I didn't think you were—"

"Shira," Saber interrupted, his voice crisp and his eyes slightly narrowed, "why did you break your promise to me last night?"

And just like that, the smile that had adorned Shira's face melted away. Right, of course; he wouldn't be happy over the fact that she hadn't summoned him. Why had she forgotten?

Saber did not wait for a response. "You came home later than you were supposed to. I can only assume it was because you were in danger."

"Look, I can explain." And so Shira told him everything that had happened yesterday, from when she reacted to the barrier to when Rin saved her from getting killed by Rider.

After she finished explaining, Saber frowned. "You still have not answered my question. Why didn't you use a Command Seal to summon me?"

Shira shifted uncomfortably under Saber's cool gaze. "Well, I didn't think I was in that much danger."

 _Liar,_ a voice sounding annoyingly like Archer whispered. _You were in danger and you know it. Rider would've easily killed you if Tohsaka hadn't gotten there in time. You just didn't want Saber in any danger._

Shira mentally told the voice to mind its own damn business.

Unfortunately for her, Saber was not letting the matter drop. "You were attacked by Rider, Shira," he said. "How could that situation not be dangerous?"

"Look, breakfast is on the table and I'm hungry," Shira said, a bit testier than she intended. "Can we please eat and talk about this later?"

Saber paused. "Very well; breakfast is an excellent idea. But even so," he added, "you need to start taking your role as Master seriously."

* * *

Shinji was absent again today.

 _Why doesn't that surprise me?_ Shira thought, sparing a glance at Shinji's vacant desk as morning classes began. If her half-formed hunch was correct, then no doubt Shinji was less concerned about a good attendance record and more concerned about killing as many innocent people as he could to strengthen his Servant.

Shira inwardly winced at the derogatory turn her thoughts were taking. _Try to be reasonable, girl,_ she told herself. _Matou might be a jerk, but there's no hard evidence that he's Rider's Master or that he has anything to do with the barrier. You can't point fingers at the guy just because you're not his biggest fan._

On the other hand, though, the more she thought she may have imagined Shinji's presence in the forest yesterday, the more ridiculous it sounded.

Classes flew by quickly, and before Shira knew it, it was lunchtime. She went straight up to the roof, her appetite nonexistent, to find Rin standing there, just as she had the day before.

As Shira approached the other girl, she took note of the strange thickness in the air. It was rather similar to what the air felt like each time she passed through the school's gate, but it wasn't enough to make her want to puke, thank goodness.

"I guess I should start with the most distressing bit of information that I've found," Rin said, getting right to business without bothering with any greetings. "This morning, someone placed a call to the school. They found Mitsuzuri."

"How is she?" Shira asked immediately.

Rin pressed her lips together in a thin line. "Apparently, she's still alive, but she's completely unresponsive. The hospital says she shows signs of being poisoned, but if you ask me..."

"She was attacked by Rider."

Shira hadn't phrased it as a question, but Rin nodded all the same. "No doubt her Master ordered her to attack. The barrier that's been placed around the school is exceptionally vicious. Once that thing is activated, we're doomed; it will melt the minds and absorb the psyches of everyone here."

"Wait a minute." Shira suddenly remembered something. "Yesterday, before we heard that girl scream, you said something about delaying the barrier."

"We won't be able to destroy the barrier itself," Rin said, "but if we go through and destroy its sigils, we should at least be able to slow down the activation process."

"Sigils?" Shira repeated, confused.

"That's right," Rin confirmed. "Here's how the barrier works: Once it's erected, it starts creating a varied number of sigils. These sigils resonate with each other and allow the barrier to expand. Each sigil spawns another and the barrier gets larger and larger; as long as the sigils remain in place, the barrier will continue to grow until it completely engulfs its target.

"If we take out these sigils, the barrier will weaken. The only downside is that, with every sigil we destroy, another will eventually take its place."

"That makes sense," Shira mused; she supposed it was too much to hope for a quick and easy solution. "And just how do I fit into this plan?"

"The first thing we need to do is locate the sigils," Rin explained. "For you, that's anyplace where you've reacted to the barrier, like the front gate to the school. We need more places like that."

"Like here?" Shira pointed to the roof's floor, to a spot where the air's thickness was at its strongest.

Rin scoffed. "Oh, come on. If they were that easy to find, I would've taken them out already." But she walked over to where Shira had indicated, knelt down, and placed her hand on the floor. "You have to focus to find them—sharpen your senses and really concentrate."

Those words had barely left Rin's mouth when she gave a small gasp.

"You're right," she said in wonder. The ground around her hand suddenly began glowing white. Rin chanted a spell and small black sparks appeared around her arm. The sound of something breaking was heard, and the glow disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.

"Was that a sigil?" Shira asked.

"Yes," Rin answered as she stood up. A smirk crossed her lips. "Well, I suppose any magical talent you _do_ have had to go _somewhere_."

Shira just shook her head. _Really, Tohsaka, would it kill you to simply say thanks?_

* * *

Shira and Rin met up after school to locate and destroy more of the barrier's sigils. This process took at least two hours, and the girls found sigils within the floors of classrooms, chalkboards, ceilings, and walls. There was even a sigil located in _the boys' bathroom_ of all places, and Rin and Shira had spent several seconds just staring in disbelief before the former squared her shoulders and went to destroy the sigil as swiftly as possible.

The sun was setting by the time the girls went back to the roof, each with a milk tea from the vending machine in hand.

"Do you think we got them all?" Rin asked.

"Yeah," Shira replied. "Most of them, anyway."

"Well, we've at least destroyed enough to get the job done. Regardless of how this affects the barrier, we're bound to get a response from this reclusive Master."

"Then we catch him red-handed?" Shira guessed.

"Exactly." Rin sipped at her tea, smirking viciously as she stared out into space. "Show yourself already. You've put me through a whole lot of trouble over this. I'm gonna make you _pay_."

Shira couldn't pretend she didn't understand Rin's point, but it was still rather unnerving to see such an expression on the black-haired girl's face.

"You're a real con artist, you know that?" Shira asked, continuing after Rin had hummed in reply. "I mean, I for one would never have guessed the school's top student was nothing but a coldblooded magus."

"If the people being conned are upset," Rin said nonchalantly, "then they have no one to blame but themselves. A magus has to conceal their identity."

Shira made a noncommittal noise in her throat, taking a swig of her own tea.

"And besides," Rin went on, sounding more serious, "I'm the heir to the Tohsaka family, so if I don't work hard and become the star pupil, I'll never be able to look my father in the eye when I see him up in heaven."

"Oh." Shira shifted her gaze to Rin as the winter breeze picked up.

A slight, awkward pause passed before the redhead spoke again. "Your father's dead?"

"Yes," Rin said, her voice neutral as she shivered a little, still not looking at Shira. "He died when I was young. But he lived a long, happy life and died of natural causes, so it's not like it's painful for me or anything. After all, I am a magus."

Shira frowned, taking note of the toneless way Rin was speaking and how blank her expression was, as if she were trying to divorce herself from what she was saying.

"You're lying," Shira said quietly. "When someone dies, it hurts, and when it's someone you love, it hurts worse." A mental image of the dead Kiritsugu smiling peacefully appeared before her, and she started blinking rapidly as she downed some more tea. "My dad's dead, too, and when he died...it was one of the worst moments of my life."

A sad smile crossed Shira's face. "You can't just shrug off something like that by saying you're a magus."

The silence that followed was a long one, the only sound coming from the cold wind and the occasional sip.

"You're right." Rin's voice was soft and no longer as bland as before. "You're absolutely right. I won't even try to deny it."

A bit of warmth crept into Shira's smile; maybe she and Rin could be friends after all.

* * *

Shortly afterward, Rin decided that it was about time to be heading home. Once the girls made it off the roof and outside the school building, Shira told Rin to go on ahead and offered to throw their empty cans away.

"You wouldn't be thinking of taking a detour, would you?" Rin asked suspiciously, but she let Shira take her can anyway.

"It won't take long, I promise," Shira assured her. "I'll catch up to you in a minute."

As Rin left, Shira turned back in the direction of the school, hoping to find a trashcan. She hadn't taken more than a few steps when the horribly familiar sensation of nausea overtook her.

Shira stumbled forward, dropping the cans and clutching her stomach as if to keep everything she'd eaten and drank that day where it belonged. The air was very thick—even thicker than at the school's gate.

Mercifully, the wave of nausea passed. Shira straightened up, glancing at where Rin had stood only a little while ago. _So much for catching up to her._

After a few seconds of thought, Shira decided to check things out. If it was nothing, then great, but if it wasn't...she tried not to think about that.

She walked into the schoolyard, the air's thickness not subsiding. In fact, it seemed to be getting stronger the closer she went to the archery dojo. _Tohsaka and I didn't even think to check here,_ she thought. _I don't know why; it's by far the most suspicious._

Shira entered the dojo, the setting sun doing little to brighten the dark interior. She looked around, but there didn't seem to be—

She suddenly gasped at the sight of a large magic circle branded into a wall. Shira stepped forward, cautiously placing a hand on the circle. She let out a short yelp as black sparks made contact with her hand, flinching back as though burned.

 _I can't stay here; I gotta get Tohsaka._ But before Shira could turn around and run, she saw a dark figure out of the corner of her eye.

"Rider!"

Sure enough, the lavender-haired Servant stepped forward, and Shira curled her hand into a fist.

"You sure you wanna fight again, Emiya?"

Shira glared, recognizing that voice as its owner appeared from the shadows. Dark blue hair, light blue eyes, and a smile so smug that the redhead was sorely tempted to slap it off his face.

"Matou. I knew it was you."

Shinji addressed his Servant, ignoring Shira entirely. "I can take it from here, Rider."

With those words, Rider disappeared, and Shinji walked towards Shira, smirking all the while.


	8. The Fourth Master

Shinji finally seemed to notice the fierce glare on Shira's face.

"Why, Emiya, who pissed in your tea this morning?" His voice was mocking.

"You did after I realized you're the one behind the barrier!" Shira snapped.

"Oh, so you're a Master against your will, too?" Shinji asked, unruffled. "That makes two of us; I have no interest in fighting in this ridiculous Grail War."

"Bullshit, Matou! You expect me to believe that when you've placed a huge, life-draining barrier around the place?"

"I'm sure you're aware that we have a magus at school by the name of Tohsaka, right? I simply thought it was best to take some defensive measures with her around."

At that moment, Shira could've hit Shinji and not have felt the least bit sorry about it. "You call this a _defensive measure_?!"

"Don't get your panties in a bunch, Emiya," Shinji said, still wearing that infuriating smirk, "but as long as you're willing to chat, why don't we continue this talk at my place?"

 _Oh, I'm_ so _sure that talking is all you have in mind,_ Shira thought sarcastically. "I wouldn't go anywhere with you with a ten-foot pole. Anything you have to say to me, it can be said here."

Shinji's mouth twitched downward and a flicker of annoyance flashed in his eyes, but his smirk was back on his face in no time at all. "Fine, then; I'll get straight to the point. I think you and I should work together."

 _...What?_ Shira blinked, her glare only slightly fading.

Shinji continued without waiting for a response. "While I have become a Master, I'm far from experienced, so I'd like to join forces with someone I can trust."

 _Trust happens to be a two-way street, and I trust you about as far as I can throw you._ Out loud, Shira said, "First of all, I have some questions of my own. Who attacked Mitsuzuri? It was you, wasn't it?"

"Oh," Shinji answered, as if suddenly remembering something, "I did hear about what happened to that poor girl. It seems to me like she was attacked by someone's Servant. I hope it goes without saying that I had _nothing_ to do with it."

"Uh-huh." Shira pressed her lips into a thin line; she didn't believe him for a second, but forcing the issue wouldn't get her anywhere. "Next question: How it is that you were chosen to be a Master?"

"The Matou family is a _magi_ family," Shinji said matter-of-factly.

Shira's eyes widened in surprise. "Since when?"

"A long time ago. Our powers have dried up, so no one in our family is currently a magus. We've studied the lore, but that's it."

"Wait, are you saying Sakura has studied magecraft, too?" It sounded ridiculous to Shira; Sakura had always seemed so normal.

Shinji scoffed. "Don't you know anything? When there are two children in a magi family, it's the eldest son who becomes the heir. The general rule is that those who aren't chosen as successors are either raised in ignorance of magic or adopted out."

"I see." Shira nodded. "So Sakura doesn't have anything to do with the Grail War."

"Yes, but that means I can't use magic and you don't know its history, which makes us the perfect partners. Together, we can take out our biggest threat." Shinji smirked again. "That being Tohsaka."

"Tohsaka?" Shira repeated, her eyes narrowed.

"Yes, of course," Shinji confirmed. "First of all, she seems to trust you, which is good. Second of all, I don't have any magic circuits, which means I can't be detected by magi. So, if we join forces, taking out Tohsaka should be simple."

"Hold on," Shira said suddenly as something occurred to her. "Tohsaka said she sensed another magus at school. If it wasn't you she was picking up on—"

"Then somewhere in our school, there's a _fourth_ Master," Shinji finished. "Interesting."

 _Another one, huh?_ Shira mused. After a pause, she said, "Well, about your idea on becoming allies, I'm afraid the answer is no. I may have to fight Tohsaka one day, but right now, she's someone I can trust."

"That's your choice," Shinji replied indifferently. "I'll just sit back and watch how things play out, then."

"I've wasted enough of my time," Shira said, her voice cool. "Goodbye, Matou." She turned around to leave the archery dojo.

"Emiya," Shinji spoke.

Shira grunted in exasperation, turning back to face him. "What now?"

"Here's a little information for you, in a show of good faith. I've been told that there's a Master who's set up shop at Ryudou Temple."

Shira's lips parted in shock. "That's Issei's house!"

"According to Rider," Shinji went on, "there's a witch who's been gathering souls in very large quantities. I have no intention of making a move on her, but if you think you have the guts," a sneer formed on his face, "go right ahead."

Shira remained silent, not trusting herself to speak, as she finally left the dojo for home. She made her way off the school's campus and onto the street, taking in the wonderfully fresh air.

As she walked, she replayed what Shinji had said about there being a Master at Ryudou Temple. _I wonder if it's even true,_ she thought, frowning. For all Shira knew, Shinji may have lied about it to try to send her on a wild goose chase.

She stopped walking once she came to a street corner, the nearby traffic light red. She allowed her gaze to drift upward to the mountain in the distance, where Ryudou Temple was located. _On the other hand, though, if there really is a witch gathering souls, it would explain all these so-called gas leaks..._

"The light's green, Emiya."

Shira jumped slightly, startled from her thoughts. She turned around to see that Issei had walked up to her.

"Oh, hey there," she greeted, her voice sounding a little awkward.

"Is something wrong?" Issei asked. "What were you staring at the mountain for?"

"Issei," Shira began, "have you noticed anything strange going on at the temple lately?"

If Issei thought there was anything odd about Shira's question, he didn't show it. "Change is constant up there; after all, we have about fifty monks-in-training living together. With that said, change never reaches the level of drama. The mountain is a tranquil place, all day, every day."

"That's nice to hear," Shira commented. _I guess Matou was lying after all; what a relief._

"However," Issei continued, "there _is_ this woman that my father has been giving lodging to lately."

 _Damn it!_ If it wouldn't have looked so bizarre, Shira would've visibly wilted.

"Who is she?" Shira asked, hoping she merely seemed curious. "Is she a nun or something?"

"No," Issei replied. "Her circumstances are a bit unique. She's got a wedding date coming up, and Father is letting her use a room until then. She's exceptionally beautiful, even enough to catch my eye."

Silence followed that last statement.

 _...Wow,_ Shira thought, stunned. _First time for everything, I suppose._

But if Shira was shocked, that was nothing compared to the utterly dumbfounded expression that crossed Issei's face barely three seconds later.

"Did I just say that out loud?!" he yelped. "This is the problem with women!"

Shira just shook her head. _Uh, newsflash: I'm a girl. That's never bothered you._ As Issei began reciting what sounded like a Buddhist prayer, Shira looked at the traffic light to see that it was indeed green.

"See ya later, Issei," she said, continuing on her way.

* * *

"I'm home— _ahh_!"

Shira had just opened the front door of the Emiya estate to find herself face-to-face with Saber, who had his arms crossed over his chest and was looking at her with a disapproving glare.

"Why are you late again, Shira?" Saber demanded.

"Finally!" Rin exclaimed, coming to the door and standing behind Saber. "We were worried you'd been attacked!"

"I had a little run-in with Matou," Shira said. She, Saber, and Rin went to the living room, where Shira explained her conversation with Shinji.

"There's a Master at Ryudou Temple?" Rin asked after the explanation was finished.

"Apparently," Shira replied. "She's some witch that's been gathering a bunch of souls. I'll bet she's the one that's behind all the attacks in New Town lately."

Saber's brow furrowed. "Tell me, how much of what this Shinji Matou tells you can you actually rely on?"

"Ordinarily, I'd say little to none," Shira said, "but I saw Issei while walking home, and he said that his father is letting a woman stay at the temple. And since I trust Issei a heck of a lot more than I'd ever trust Matou, this whole thing with a witch on the mountain is most likely true."

"Did Shinji ask you to join forces with him?" Rin questioned.

"Yeah," Shira admitted, "but I turned him down. Like I said, I don't trust him." She paused. "Still, Matou said he isn't a magus, and if that's true, he shouldn't be too big of a threat." _Aside from that barrier,_ she added silently.

Rin quickly got back to the original topic. "Whatever kind of Master this woman is, it makes no sense to set up shop in a remote place like Ryudou Temple; none."

"I have to disagree on that point," Saber said. "That temple sits on an old spiritual leyline. It's the perfect place for anyone who wants to gather souls."

Shira turned to him, raising an eyebrow. _And how would Saber know that?_ she wondered.

"Hold on!" Rin also seemed put off by what Saber had said, but for a different reason. "If Ryudou Temple is such a key location, why is everyone else in the Grail War ignoring it?"

"Because a barrier has been raised over the mountain," Saber explained calmly. "It has no effect on normal humans, but if we Servants were to set foot inside that compound, our abilities would dramatically decrease."

Rin hummed. "This is tricky. The chances of me and Shira defeating that witch on our own are slim at best."

Shira nodded vaguely.

"Is something wrong, Shira?" Saber asked.

"Huh? Oh." Shira blinked, suddenly realizing that she'd still been staring intently at Saber. "Sorry, I just zoned out for a bit. It's nothing important."

That seemed to be enough for Saber. "At any rate, now that we have determined there is a Master on that mountain, I believe it's imperative that we attack as soon as possible."

"I don't think that's a good idea," Shira objected. "We should leave her alone for now."

"That's absurd!" Saber argued. "What have I been resting for if not for this?"

"If this woman is as thorough as we think she is, then she's probably set up traps in the temple," Shira pointed out. "If we rush in without a plan, we're dead."

And no doubt that was exactly what Shinji wanted, but Shira left that unsaid.

"Those kinds of risks are to be expected in war," Saber protested, the slightest edge coloring his voice. "Shira—"

Rin raised up her hand to keep Saber from continuing. "Sorry, Saber, but I agree with Shira on this one."

Saber turned his gaze to her. "Rin!"

"If we stroll onto an opponent's turf," Rin went on, "we'll first need to find out which Servant we'll be dealing with. Besides, Archer still hasn't recovered enough for something like this."

"Okay, so it's settled," Shira stated. "Right, Saber?"

Saber looked away and said nothing.

* * *

Taiga and Sakura arrived for dinner a little while later, and Saber spent the next hour or so in silence. Throughout dinner, he spoke only when directly spoken to, and even then, his answers were curt and brief. Shira figured Saber's bad mood was due to the decision to not immediately launch an attack on Ryudou Temple. Even so, she still couldn't understand _why_ he was so irritated, and she found that to be even more annoying than his sullenness.

After dinner was over, Sakura and Taiga left and Rin went to her room, leaving Shira and Saber alone in the kitchen.

The blond wasted no time in getting to the point. "Shira, regarding the witch on the mountain, you are certain you won't reconsider?"

"I said no!" Shira snapped in frustration. "We can't just waltz up there without any idea of what to do!"

"I'm not naïve enough to believe we can achieve victory unscathed," Saber said, his voice calm enough. "I don't care what injuries I sustain; as long as I still draw breath, I can fight."

"Are you crazy?" Shira demanded incredulously. "Why would you throw yourself into a situation where you know you're going to get hurt?" _Doesn't he remember what happened with Berserker? There just can't be a repeat of that!_

"Getting hurt is part of being a Servant." Saber was now starting to become as frustrated as Shira, no longer sounding as calm as before. "I will not tolerate having a Master who avoids battle."

"You're not even fully healed yet!"

"I'm well enough to take on this fight! Your concern for my health is unnecessary."

Shira bit sharply on her lower lip, resisting any curse word that wanted to fly out of her mouth. "The last time you were in a fight, you barely made it out alive. Is it your objective to get us killed? I'm sorry, but I'd rather avoid dying, thank you very much."

A moment of silence passed, Shira's brown eyes staring unflinchingly into Saber's blue-green ones.

"You're acting like a child, Shira," Saber finally said, his tone icy.

 _And you're not?_ Shira thought. "Think what you want, but we're not attacking anyone now, so just drop it, okay?"

Saber momentarily paused. "Very well," he said, though he sounded far from happy about it, "if that is what my Master wishes."

Shira nodded briefly, then left to go to her bedroom.

* * *

Saber stood in front of Shira's door, listening to the redhead's soft breathing, an indication that she was asleep.

If there was one word he could use to describe his Master, Saber would have chosen "puzzling." He was a Servant—a weapon to be wielded, a tool to be used—yet Shira did not treat him as such. She threw herself in harm's way in a rash attempt to protect him, introduced him to people who were better off not knowing of his existence, and wanted to keep him away from battle.

 _She is treating me like she would a human,_ Saber thought. He wasn't quite sure what to think of that; when was the last time anyone had treated him as a human?

What was more were the reactions Shira could invoke in him, and he didn't know what to make of that, either. Saber had perfected the task of keeping his emotions under control, but there were occasions where Shira caused that control to slip: during their argument in the kitchen, for instance.

Which led into what Saber intended to do now. After a few more seconds of listening at the door, the blond quietly walked away and went outside the estate.

Whether Shira liked it or not, Saber was going to confront the witch at Ryudou Temple. Fighting was what Servants did; the sooner his Master understood that, the better.

_In the meantime, I must make sure your naïveté does not result in another Master killing you, Shira._

In a twinkling of light, Saber's civilian clothes were replaced with his armor. With that done, he leapt up and away towards his destination.


	9. An Assassin in the Night

_This place has changed from when I was last summoned,_ was what Saber thought when he finally made it to the steps of Ryudou Temple. The air was stagnant and smelled of death, and the spiritual leyline of the land was already contaminated with dark energy. Every instinct in the knight's body told him that if he entered the temple, he would not be coming out alive.

Nonetheless, Saber proceeded to run up the stone stairs. He'd already come this far; there was no way he could turn back now.

In no time at all, the first flight of stairs was behind him, but before he could continue with the second, smaller flight, he looked up and stopped. A cloud drifted away from the moon, the latter's light bathing the temple in a silvery glow. At the top of the stairs, standing with his back to the temple's entrance, was a man dressed in the garb of a samurai, a Japanese katana in hand.

Saber frowned, gripping his invisible sword tightly. He had no doubt the man was a Servant, but what was strange was that Saber could sense nothing from him—no mana, no Noble Phantasm, nothing. Granted, that fact should have meant that Saber could easily kill the samurai in one blow if he so chose, but he had the feeling that underestimating this enemy would cost him dearly.

"Just who are you?" Saber barked out, his voice as sharp as a whip.

The samurai's lips curved upward in a smirk. "I'm a Servant of the Assassin class, Kojiro Sasaki."

 _What?_ Saber thought, surprised. Servants were supposed to hide their identities; if their true names were revealed, it left enemies free to exploit their weaknesses. Saber had never even let Shira know his real name—there was always the chance she would let it slip to another Master (not that he believed she would do it intentionally, but a skilled magus such as Rin would have ways of getting the information out of her).

All in all, a Servant's true identity was meant to be their most closely guarded secret, yet this Assassin Servant had disclosed his name as if it were nothing.

Saber quickly forced back his surprise. "How very shrewd of you." _Or audacious._ "Having given me your name, as a knight, I am obligated to return the courtesy." He looked up at Assassin. "Well then, Kojiro, allow me to introduce myself. My name is—"

"That won't be necessary," Assassin interrupted, slowly walking down the steps. "An adversary who feels obligated to give his true name? I guess that makes me the one with bad manners."

Tensing, Saber got into a fighting stance, his sword at the ready.

"Personally, I find names to be irrelevant," Assassin continued. "For people like us, only our swords need to know our opponents."

He was now standing a few feet away from Saber. "That is the true role of a Servant." He pointed his katana at the knight's face. "Wouldn't you agree, Saber?"

Saber smiled humorlessly. "Oh, believe me, I agree with you completely." And with that, he jumped back several feet away from Assassin.

"Very well, then." Assassin's smirk faded, his mouth setting into a grim line. "Let's start doing our jobs, shall we?"

The samurai raised his katana higher and took a battle stance. For a moment, both swordsmen silently stared each other down, both waiting for the other to make the first strike. Finally, Saber rushed at Assassin, who parried his blow. The air filled with the sound of clanging metal as steel met steel.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Emiya estate, Shira jolted awake from a deep sleep with a gasp, her chest painfully constricting.

 _What...what's going on?_ she thought groggily, clutching her chest. _Saber?_

She stumbled toward Saber's door and opened it. What she found was Saber's neatly made futon, but no sign of her Servant.

 _He's gone?!_ Stunned confusion replaced Shira's tiredness. _But where could he—?_ The answer dawned on her suddenly. If Saber wasn't here, and his bed didn't look like it had been slept in since last night, then that meant he must've gone to Ryudou Temple.

In other words, he did precisely the opposite of what she had told him.

By now, Shira's mind was clouded with anger. _God damn it, Saber! I said we should_ stay put _, not throw ourselves into a fight! But did you listen? Of course not!_

Even as her furious thoughts continued, Shira went to her room for a quick change of clothes, then hurried outside to grab a bike from the shed. If she was fast enough, she could make it to Ryudou Temple before Saber got too badly injured.

And once she knew he was okay, she was going to scold him for doing something so stupid.

* * *

The next few minutes were spent with Saber's invisible sword clashing against Assassin's katana. With a yell, Saber lunged towards Assassin, his sword swung downward, but the samurai merely sidestepped the attack and swung his katana in the knight's direction. Saber raised his sword to block the attack, sparks flying. He struck again in an attempt to disarm his opponent, but Assassin counterattacked, the force of the blow sending Saber flying backward.

Saber regained his footing, landing on the flat stone surface that separated the first flight of stairs from the second. He rushed towards Assassin, his attacks more aggressive, but Assassin calmly blocked every one of them. At last, Saber leapt backward, cursing the disadvantage of fighting on stairs.

"You're proving to be quite difficult," Assassin commented. "I never thought an invisible blade could cause me this much trouble."

 _Does he mean to mock me?_ Saber thought, glaring slightly.

"My sword style is exceptionally brutal," Assassin went on. "If you were an average opponent, I would have taken your head off with my very first blow. I am happy that you have lasted this long, Saber." He smirked. "But that can't be all you've got. Surely that invisible sword of yours isn't just for show."

"I'm not here to talk," Saber snapped, "I'm here to fight!"

He rushed forward again, his sword raised. Once again, Assassin sidestepped the attack.

"I think I've accurately measured your blade," Assassin said casually. "I'm guessing one Shaku long and one sun wide."

That sentence was enough to stop Saber short with a shocked gasp. He turned to face his opponent. "You believe you have successfully measured my weapon in the short time we have been fighting? And without using any magic?"

Assassin ignored Saber's questions. "Stop hiding behind that sword, Saber; show me the true extent of your abilities."

Saber paused, his face hardening. "Are you suggesting that I have been holding back?"

"Are you suggesting that you haven't?" Assassin countered. "Whatever your reasons are, it's insulting to be attacked by someone whose blade is still sheathed."

The knight remained coldly silent. He knew exactly what Assassin was trying to do: he was trying to goad him into revealing his Noble Phantasm. That was the one thing Saber should not— _could_ not—do, for more reasons than one.

Assassin smiled grimly. "If you're reluctant to show me your true capacity, then I'll just have to show you my own."

So saying, Assassin stepped down to where Saber was standing. "Raise your sword, or you will most definitely die, Saber."

Wordlessly, Saber did what he was told, lifting his sword and taking a battle stance. Assassin slowly raised his katana to be level with his head, gripping the hilt with both hands and pointing his weapon horizontally. He closed his eyes in concentration.

"Secret technique." A few seconds later, his eyes opened. " _Turning Swallow Strike_!" His katana struck at lightning speed, but there were _two_ blows coming in Saber's direction, not just one. Saber just barely managed to parry the strikes, the force of Assassin's attack sending him into the air and tumbling to the hard, unforgiving stone stairs.

"Well, you blocked it," Assassin stated, sounding the slightest bit impressed as Saber got himself back up. "A swallow senses disturbances in the air and changes its flight path accordingly. To prevent this, you simply close off all avenues of escape. The first strike attacks the swallow; the second slashes the evading fledgling in half. But swallows are nimble creatures, so the two strikes must be made almost simultaneously."

Saber's eyes narrowed. "I believe you are oversimplifying the technique you used. When you struck, your blade was genuinely in two places at once. You used Multi-Dimensional Refraction—and without needing any magecraft."

So Saber's suspicions had been confirmed. Whatever Assassin—this Kojiro—was, he was clearly not an Epic Spirit. He had no real Noble Phantasm, but the attack he just used—which was only possible due to the samurai's inhuman skill—was on par with one. Saber couldn't help the grudging respect welling in him.

"Yes," Assassin agreed, now staring out into space, "but unfortunately, my footing was bad. The key to the Turning Swallow Strike lies within the third blow. If these steps were a bit wider, I would have been able to land a vertical strike as well."

Assassin paused. "I had cursed my fate in being summoned into this world, but not after tonight." He turned to face Saber. "This is the sword match I never had while I was alive. If the world grants me one opportunity to utilize everything I know, then being summoned would have been worth it after all."

Saber tensed, hoping the look on his face showed only hostility and not the apprehension, even fear, he was suddenly feeling. If Assassin used the Turning Swallow Strike a second time, he wasn't certain if he'd be able to block it. That technique was even deadlier than Gae Bolg; with the aforementioned spear, one could find a countermeasure upon realizing it was targeting the heart. But with the Turning Swallow Strike, there were no such countermeasures—the only thing to do was to make sure Assassin would not be able to use it.

 _And to do so,_ Saber realized, _I must attack him without holding_ anything _back._

Which meant unleashing his Noble Phantasm.

"Well," Saber spoke, his voice devoid of any emotion, "you are clearly an enemy I cannot afford to go easy on."

It would mean draining himself of his mana, possibly even causing him to disappear, but if using the full extent of his power meant defeating Assassin, then so be it.

Saber readied his sword as Assassin approached him.

"So, is your head finally in the game, Saber?" The samurai grinned wickedly.

The knight did not even bother to glare. And as Assassin slowly raised his katana, Saber waited for the right moment to release Invisible Air from his sword.

* * *

Even though Shira had been pedaling as fast as she could, it still felt as though it took too long to reach the mountain. She got off her bike and hurried across the mountain pass, finally finding the stairs that led up to Ryudou Temple.

But before she could continue to where Saber undoubtedly was, a massive gust of wind as powerful as a typhoon stopped her in her tracks. Shira squinted her eyes, trying to look ahead as she struggled to maintain her balance. She could just make out an armored figure—Saber—standing in front of a man wearing a kimono, the trees surrounding the mountain creaking in the wind.

Slowly, Shira was able to get close enough to see that the sudden wind must have been Saber's doing; as the pale blue glow engulfing his sword got brighter, the wind grew even stronger.

"Saber!" Shira cried out, trying to be heard over the noise. _Damn; how am I supposed to reach him if—_

Her left hand suddenly throbbed painfully before she could complete that thought. A quick glance showed that her Command Seals were glowing. Shira sensed mana— _Saber's_ mana—filling the wind, and she looked up to see the glow of her Servant's sword intensifying even more.

While she didn't know exactly what Saber was planning, Shira knew it couldn't be good. _Is he crazy?! He's not even fully healed!_

No, more importantly, Saber had no way to replenish his mana; therefore, he should not be using so much mana at once. And if all of his mana was used up, he would surely—

"SABER!" Shira screamed again, forcing herself to run despite the wind still blowing. Whatever it took, she _had_ to get Saber to stop whatever it was he was doing. There was no way she was going to watch him die.

Shira stopped just as she got a little closer to Saber, not because of the wind, but because she suddenly heard the sound of someone darting through the trees.

"Who's there?!"

Saber and his opponent must have heard that sound as well, or maybe it was only because of what Shira had yelled out, but a few seconds later, the wind subsided, stopping altogether, and the glow faded from Saber's sword, leaving it invisible.

"Delay your strike, Saber," the man wielding a katana said. "It appears someone is spying on your sword technique. If we continue, this fight will no longer be between the two of us." He turned his back and walked toward the temple's gate.

"Wait, Assassin!" Saber exclaimed. "You intend to leave this fight unfinished?!"

"If you cross the temple's gate," the man—Assassin, apparently—replied, "I will finish what we started, but my orders only extend that far. Besides," he turned around to face Saber with a smirk, "the fact that this battle was interrupted turned out to be quite lucky for you. I suggest you leave before our uninvited spectator turns his attention...to the girl."

As Assassin disappeared from sight, Shira finally hurried over to where Saber was standing.

"Saber, just what the hell are you thinking?!" she demanded. "I specifically said that—"

But she was cut off mid-rant as Saber's armor suddenly glowed white and disappeared from his body. He started to tremble, beginning to fall when his legs were no longer strong enough to carry his weight.

"Saber!" Shira's anger melted away into concern as she quickly grabbed him before he could hit the stairs. "Are you alright?"

But Saber, with his head bowed and his eyes closed, didn't respond.

* * *

For the next two hours, Shira was forced to carry the unconscious Saber on her back. He wasn't terribly heavy, but there were times where she was forced to stop and rest for a few minutes before going on. What was more was that she often found herself distracted by Saber lightly breathing against her, causing her face to feel inexplicably warm.

It was moments like these where she didn't know whether to be thankful for or lament her Servant being unconscious.

At last, she finally made it to the estate and lay Saber down in a sitting position in the entryway. With a sharp exhale, Shira straightened up, letting her gaze wander to Saber.

She couldn't help the small smile that graced her features. Saber looked just as peaceful as the first time she saw him sleeping. It was _almost_ enough to make her forget how mad she was at him.

 _Don't think you're off the hook, though,_ Shira silently warned Saber as she bent down to wrap her arms around him. But before she could get him standing, a voice cut in.

"Oh. So this is where you like to have your fun."

"Tohsaka!" Shira looked up to see Rin standing there with an amused grin on her face.

"Interesting hobby," Rin remarked. "Don't let me stop you; go right ahead."

Immediately, Shira let go of Saber, shooting straight up. "No, no, no! It's not what it looks like, I swear!" Honestly, though, she didn't know what this could've looked like to an outside observer, but if it got Rin in the mood to make fun of her, it couldn't be good.

"I was just trying to get Saber to his room!" Shira continued to ramble. "I had to carry him and everything! You can see that, can't you?"

Rin snorted, still annoyingly amused. "Oh, of course I can."

"You're such a liar!" Shira snapped.

"Let me guess," Rin said, sounding more serious and ignoring what Shira had said, "Saber went off to fight alone, and you tried to stop him?"

Shira nodded briefly.

Rin walked over to Saber. "I'll carry him to his room."

"No!" Shira objected forcefully as Rin put an arm around Saber and got him into a standing position. "I'll do it; you go back to bed." She wasn't sure why she was being so vehement, but she didn't much care.

That amused smile was back on Rin's face as she turned to face Shira. "Relax; I promise not to take advantage of your precious Saber."

"My precious...?" Shira repeated, dumbfounded. "What is _that_ supposed to mean?!"

"You figure it out." Rin turned and walked away, Saber leaning heavily on her shoulder. "And make us some tea while you're at it; I want to know what happened tonight. And _please_ use my tea set."

"Fine, whatever," Shira grumbled.

Several minutes later, Shira was in the kitchen, pouring the newly made tea into Rin's porcelain teapot.

"How's it coming, Shira?" Rin asked as she entered the room.

"It's done," Shira said, looking up to see an awake Saber standing in the kitchen's doorway. "Saber? I thought you were still asleep."

"His body temporarily shut down," Rin explained as she got herself a cup of tea and took it to the dining room table. "He came to just a few minutes ago; it's not like he was in a coma or anything."

"Oh. I see." Shira paused as she and Saber joined Rin at the table. _Okay,_ now _it's interrogation time._ "Saber, why did you have to sneak out like that?"

Saber regarded her coolly before speaking. "I went to Ryudou Temple and ended up fighting an Assassin Servant. It was not long before the presence of a third Servant was detected and we called the fight off."

"I didn't ask where you went," Shira reminded him heatedly. "I asked why you felt you had to go fight in the first place."

"Servants fight, Shira; it's what we are summoned to do," Saber said, his voice laced with impatience. "What I would like to know is why my Master tells me to avoid fighting."

Shira looked away from those piercing blue-green eyes. "Well..." Her voice trailed off; in her heart of hearts, she knew the answer, but knowing it and saying it out loud were two different things.

"Do you truly believe you can survive the Grail War without having me fight?" Saber questioned.

"No," Shira admitted shortly, "it's just—"

"Do you think you can get through the War without fighting at all?"

"Of course not, but—"

"Or perhaps you think so highly of yourself that you believe you can defeat a Servant?"

"That's not it at all!" Shira exploded, standing up and glaring at Saber. "You want to know what my deal is? Fine, I'll tell you. I don't ever want to see you get hurt—it's as simple as that! While you were fighting Berserker, I had to stand there watching helplessly from the sidelines while you got the crap beat out of you and were nearly _killed_! I'd rather go into battle myself than have a repeat of that! There is no way I'm gonna sit around and let you die right in front of me!"

She exhaled roughly, her eyes suddenly stinging. "If that happened...if you died and it was my fault..." her voice had lowered, and she blinked rapidly, "I would never forgive myself."

Shira had not meant to say all of that. Maybe it was her tiredness that had caused her to snap, or her annoyance that Saber hadn't let her get a word in edgewise, or all the frustration she had felt ever since their argument earlier tonight. But whatever the reason, it had caused her to rant, and once she started, she hadn't been able to stop.

To Saber's credit, only the widening of his eyes and slight parting of his lips were the only visible signs of his shock at his Master's impassioned rant.

_She does not want me to die?_

A part of him wanted to laugh bitterly; according to history, his death was many centuries ago, and from his point of view, he had died even before then. But another part—the part of him that found Shira so puzzling—was mystified that this girl, this unusual Master, cared so strongly about whether he lived to see another day.

Saber slowly stood up. "Shira..." he began.

"So," Rin, who had been quiet up until this point, interrupted, "what you're saying is that you value others' lives more than your own? You'd fight even though you know you can't possibly win?"

Shira shrugged as she looked at the other girl. "I guess that's one way to put it."

"Shira," Saber said again, causing the redhead to refocus on him, "you have to realize that you getting hurt yourself does not help matters. That said, if you're going to insist on fighting, I will allow it, but only on one condition."

"And what's that?"

"You must agree to take up swordplay," Saber stated. "Whenever your schedule permits, you and I will meet and I will teach you how to use a sword."

"Really?" Shira asked. "So, if I agree to this, I'll be the one who's doing all the fighting?"

"That's crazy!" Rin protested. "Even if Shira learns how to use a sword, it doesn't mean she'll be able to go up against a Servant."

"It's better than going into a fight blind," Saber pointed out. "At the very least, I can teach Shira how to keep her cool in the heat of battle." He turned to address his Master. "Anything else will depend on how determined you are to learn."

"That won't be a problem," Shira declared confidently. "I can promise you that."

Rin still wasn't convinced. "This isn't exactly an ideal time to take fencing classes."

"You are right, Rin," Saber concurred, "but this is war. Shira needs to know what death in the throes of battle truly entails—preferably as often as possible."

Shira's confidence wavered slightly; judging from what Saber had just said, she suspected he was going to be a tough instructor.

"I should turn in." Saber went to the door. "Oh, and Shira? I suggest you get some sleep as well. Rest assured that I will not go easy on you merely because of your gender."

And her suspicions had been proven correct. All Shira could do was stare as Saber left.

"Well then, I suppose now you're free to die your hero's death," Rin teased. "If the training doesn't kill you first, that is."

"You're hilarious, Tohsaka."


	10. The Mostly Calm Interlude

The next morning, Shira got up even earlier than usual to wash the dojo's floor in preparation for her first sword lesson with Saber. By the time she finished and returned to the main house, breakfast had already started.

Taiga looked up from her plate as Shira walked into the dining room. "Shira, why are you dressed like that?"

Shira figured that was a reasonable question to ask; it was a school day, and she was wearing her favorite white and blue shirt and a long, dark blue skirt instead of her uniform.

Luckily, she came prepared for such a question. "Because I'm not going to school today," the redhead answered easily, sitting down at the table.

"What do you mean, Senpai?" Sakura stared at Shira in confusion, and even Saber and Rin were looking on in mild curiosity. Well, Rin looked curious; Saber looked calm, almost detached from the conversation taking place.

"That's ridiculous!" Taiga protested. "You're in perfect health; there is no reason for you to miss school!"

"Actually, remember that injury I got a year ago? It's probably because of how cold it's gotten, but it's really been acting up lately," Shira fibbed.

Taiga tsked. "I'm not buying that, Shira. You're going to school and that's that!"

Shira sighed; that "my old injury's hurting" excuse sounded a bit less flimsy in her head. "Look, Fuji-nee, I just need you to cut me some slack. Don't worry, I'll make it up; I'll go to school on Sunday if you want me to."

"Ms. Fujimura," Rin spoke, "the truth is—"

"I've got this, Tohsaka," Shira interrupted. _Looks like I'm going for another half-truth._ "It's not that I want to play hooky or anything." She smiled at Taiga to show her sincerity. "But there's something _really_ important I need to take care of."

 _Like figuring out how to use a sword well enough to go up against a Servant without getting slaughtered._ For obvious reasons, Shira left that unsaid. She continued to smile sweetly as Taiga glared at her in suspicion.

Finally, the older woman huffed. "Whatever," Taiga said, stabbing at her food with more force than necessary. "You know, ever since you were a kid, the only time you wouldn't tell me what was going on was when what was going on was 'really important.'"

 _You're gonna have to take my word for it, Fuji-nee,_ Shira thought. _I'd rather you didn't know what's really going on around here; it'll be safer for you._

In any case, Shira took Taiga's response as the latter's reluctant acceptance and busied herself with eating.

* * *

After Rin, Sakura, and Taiga left for school, Shira headed back to the dojo with Saber. When they got there, Shira half expected Saber to change into his armor, but he was still dressed in the civilian clothes he wore when outside of battle.

"You look as though you want to say something, Shira," Saber remarked as the pair walked to the center of the dojo.

Shira shook her head quickly. "It's nothing, really; I guess I just thought you'd be in your armor, since we'll be training."

"I can transition into my armor if you would prefer it," Saber offered.

"No, it's fine," Shira assured him. "You can train wearing whatever you want; don't feel like you need to change clothes because of me."

Actually, now that she thought of it, Saber wearing normal clothing instead of his armor did make some sense. Shira was a human, and while she had sparred with Kiritsugu a few times, she never had any formal swordsmanship classes. As such, even if she landed a few blows on Saber, she doubted she could cause him any real harm; Saber must have figured that wearing armor would be unnecessary.

"Okay!" Shira said at present after a brief silence, clapping her hands once. "So I guess we should begin, huh?"

She went over to a wall and took down two shinais, tossing one to Saber as she walked back to him.

"Shall we?" Shira asked, raising her shinai.

"Very well." Saber did the same. "I expressed to you last night that I want you to experience combat at least once, so we will be sparring as if we are trying to kill each other."

"Fine," Shira agreed, determination settling into her features. "Ready whenever you are."

And with that, Saber rushed at Shira, his shinai colliding with her stomach. The sudden blow was enough to knock her shinai out of her hand and send her to her knees. Shira grabbed her shinai and sprung up, aiming a strike at Saber. He parried the blow and struck her in the stomach a second time. Once again, Shira was sent crashing to the floor.

She grunted painfully despite herself, rubbing her stomach. "Sheesh, you weren't kidding, were you? Tohsaka might just be right about the training killing me."

"It's only a bruise," Saber said calmly as Shira grabbed her shinai, got up again, and pointed it at him. "In a few minutes, you will forget about it completely."

"Hey, I'm the one who has to feel it, you know," Shira complained.

Saber's shinai batted Shira's aside. "If that is the case, then I think it's best if you take time to recover yourself before we continue."

"I never said I wanted to stop." Shira pointed her weapon at the blond again. "In fact, I'm not stopping until I land a hit."

Saber raised an eyebrow. "I already knew you could be stubborn, but I did not know the extent of it."

"You don't think I can do it?"

"I know from experience not to underestimate a woman, but even so—"

"Are you making fun of me?" Shira cut Saber off, eyes narrowing.

"How did you come to that conclusion?" he asked rhetorically. "My point is, Shira, that we could spar all day and it would not matter if your body is not prepared for the training."

Shira sighed in resignation, laying herself down on the cool floor and letting her eyes close. But it wasn't long before she was back on her feet.

The minutes ticked by as the sparring went on. No matter what Shira did, however, she wasn't able to land a single hit on Saber, nor even knock his shinai out of his hand. Whenever she tried to rush at him, he would always be ready, whether he attacked her mercilessly or simply disarmed her. Once, when Shira had been disarmed for the umpteenth time, she didn't even bother with grabbing her shinai and just tried tackling Saber, but he easily dodged her.

Just to add another blow to her pride, the training had left Shira sore, flushed, sweaty, and breathing raggedly, while Saber was as even-tempered as ever, not having broken a sweat.

 _Two hours of training, and he_ still _looks good,_ Shira found herself thinking as she caught her breath while being face first on the floor.

"That will do for now," she heard Saber say decidedly.

Shira slowly sat up, leaning against a wall. "I don't think I could've gone on for much longer anyway," she admitted, more to herself than to Saber. She sighed. "Man, that sounds pathetic."

Saber sat down next to her. "There is nothing for you to be ashamed of. You may not have landed a blow on me, but every strike you aimed had an excellent intensity. It's been a while since I have sparred with such an enthusiastic opponent."

The small, kind smile on his face, so different from the cool, expressionless demeanor he displayed while they sparred, was enough for Shira to flush even more, though she grinned a little herself.

"Want me to get some water for us?" she asked after a slight pause.

"I can take care of that; stay here and rest," Saber said, standing up and walking out of the dojo.

Several minutes later, Saber returned with a pitcher of cold water and two paper cups. He didn't get any water for himself, but Shira eagerly filled her cup with water and drank, savoring the taste.

As she drank a second cup of water, Shira let her mind wander. It suddenly occurred to her that, while she knew Saber's goal was to win the Holy Grail, she had no idea why he wanted to win it. In fact, even though they'd been living in very close proximity to each other for the past three days, she didn't really know much about him. He was strong, levelheaded, protective, and had a stubborn streak that clashed with her own, but what was his motive to fight in the Grail War? What wish did he want fulfilled?

She decided it couldn't hurt to ask him.

"Hey, Saber," Shira began after draining her cup, "can I ask you a question?"

"What is it?" Saber wanted to know.

"It's about the Grail," Shira explained. "If we win it, what sort of wish do you want granted?"

Saber paused. "That is...quite personal, Shira," he said, dodging her inquiry. "As my Master, are you ordering me to answer such a question?"

"Hey, it's fine if you don't want to answer. I know as much as the next person that not all wishes ought to be said out loud." Shira looked away, feeling slightly guilty for bringing it up. "I was just curious, that's all. Sorry if I offended you."

Now it was Saber's turn to feel a little guilt. "No; forgive me for being evasive." _I may not have even told her my true name, but I should at least share some of my motivation with her._ "The reason I seek the Holy Grail is quite simple. I wish to carry out a certain obligation I have that went unfulfilled when I was alive."

Shira's gaze went back to Saber, her interest piqued. "When you were alive? You mean, from before you became a Servant?"

The blond nodded, his expression solemn, even sad. "I suppose what I mean to say is that the Grail will allow me to do things over again."

Shira was curious as to why doing things over should make Saber look so melancholy, but she decided he likely would be too uncomfortable if she asked that. Instead, she grinned and joked, "Well, that's a relief. I don't know what I'd do if you pulled a Tohsaka and said, 'I want the Grail so I can take over the universe!'" She adopted a haughty tone in imitation of Rin.

To her surprise, Saber chuckled softly. Shira's lighthearted grin was soon replaced with a warm smile as she gazed at him, hugging her knees to her chest.

"Rin would be furious if she heard you say that," Saber informed her. "She's rough around the edges, certainly, but I do not believe she would use the Grail to throw the world into turmoil." He paused. "...Why are you smiling at me like that?"

"Oh, well...it's just..." Shira shrugged, a bit sheepish. "This is the first time I've heard you laugh."

"Is it, now?" _She smiles because I laughed? What an interesting Master I have._ Saber's expression became a bit rueful. "The life I have led has not given me too many opportunities for laughter."

Before Shira could say anything else, her stomach chose that moment to growl.

"Are you hungry?" Saber asked.

Shira blushed a little in embarrassment. "Sounds like I am. Training really works up an appetite." She stood up, Saber following suit. "It's not quite noon, but I guess we can have an early lunch."

"Hunger is the enemy," Saber informed her sagely. "An early lunch it is, then."

A giggle escaped Shira's throat as the pair walked out of the dojo. "Hunger is the enemy? Really? I would think it wouldn't be as bad as the Servants we've encountered."

"You would be surprised, Shira," Saber replied. "You would be surprised."

As they continued walking to the main house, Shira found her gaze drawn to Saber again. Maybe it wouldn't last long, but to have even so short a time where there was no awkwardness, no arguing, no worrying about what their next move should be—it was...nice. For just a few minutes, they weren't Master and Servant, two participants in the fifth Holy Grail War, but a girl and a boy enjoying each other's company.

If there were more moments like this, Shira would be far from complaining.

And if she could see Saber smile and hear him laugh again...well, she wouldn't complain about that, either.

* * *

Rin returned to the estate that evening.

"Anything unusual happen today?" she asked Shira as she got started on making dinner.

"Nope," Shira replied, "everything's been quiet around here. What about at school?"

"No new developments on the barrier front," Rin said, "but on the completely absurd front, Shinji asked me to join forces with him."

"You're kidding." Shira momentarily paused. "So, what did you say?"

"I told him he could forget it, but unfortunately, that guy doesn't know when to quit. He started getting pushy, so I punched him and said that you and I were already teamed up." Rin smirked slightly. "I also said no boys were allowed and went on my way."

Shira blinked. "Wow." _Tohsaka sure has little restraint when it comes to Matou. Or maybe I have too much._ After all, even if she could justify punching or slapping Shinji—and to say it wouldn't be difficult was an understatement—she had yet to actually do it. As much of a creep as he was, why drag herself down to his level?

Dismissing all thoughts of Shinji from her mind, Shira left the kitchen to let Rin continue with dinner, deciding that a shower was a good idea after her training session with Saber. She went to the bathroom and shut the door behind her, quickly stripping off all her clothes and placing them neatly on the counter.

She was just about to get into the shower when she heard the door open, followed by a very undignified, unmistakably masculine yelp. Shira turned her head, and her jaw nearly hit the floor.

Standing at the door—body frozen, eyes impossibly wide, and face as red as a tomato—was Saber.

And Shira was currently naked.

One second of ringing silence passed, Shira's face burning red—no, _white_ —hot. The next second, she let out a scream loud enough for the neighbors to hear...in Turkey.

"SABER, YOU PERVERT!"

Saber broke out of his stupor long enough to back away out into the hall and shut the door as fast as he could.

"I—I am so sorry," he stammered, his voice at least an octave higher than usual and sounding quite unlike himself. "I did not realize you would be in here, I swear."

"You damn right you're sorry! Would it have killed you to knock?!" Shira instinctively tried to cover herself even though Saber could no longer see her.

"Shira, all I wanted to do was bathe," Saber insisted through the door. "It was not my intention to...to see you—"

"Just leave already! Or I'll use a Command Seal to make you forget you saw _anything_!"

"I'm sorry!" Shira heard rushing footsteps after that yelled apology. Once she figured that Saber was gone, she stepped away from the shower, staring at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Her face was still red, but the anger she initially expressed was gone; sheer mortification had taken its place. And despite the heat radiating from her face, the rest of her body had erupted in goose bumps.

 _Oh, God, why?_ Shira thought, trembling. _Why did_ Saber _have to see me_ naked _?_ She knew he hadn't walked in on purpose—for that, he was better than most guys—but...good grief, what a way to end the day. And hadn't she thought just before they'd eaten lunch that it'd been nice to spent time together in relative normalcy?

_I'm never gonna be able to look him in the eye after this. How embarrassing._

With this rather depressing thought, Shira went back to the shower and turned the water on, making sure it was as hot as possible. Maybe the scalding temperature would take her mind off what would happen the next time she saw Saber.

* * *

Meanwhile, Saber had run—yes, _run_ —to his room, roughly closed the door as though the Devil himself were on his heels, and practically slumped to his knees, his breath coming out in pants. The heat in his face had yet to subside, and his heart was still racing. Blood had pounded in his ears the second he realized Shira was standing in the bathroom without...without...

 _Without any clothes on._ Saber forced himself to complete the thought, but it was difficult to do even that. Lord above, could someone just stab him repeatedly with his own sword? He would have been quite happy to believe that the encounter had not been real, but he doubted very much that he was capable of hallucinating about Shira in such a way.

Very well, then. He would simply have to accept that he had seen Shira naked, however accidental it was. He would also have to accept that Shira probably wanted to kill him right about now, which would be quite unfortunate for him.

Saber's breath hitched as the image of his Master naked appeared in his head. For those few seconds, before she'd started screaming at him, he had gotten an actual look at the shape of her body. She was small and very slender, not as curvaceous as some women he'd known, but she was still...still...

No.

No, no, _no_.

What the _hell_ was he even thinking?!

 _You are a Servant of the Saber class,_ the blond scolded himself. _You are a knight—said to be one of the greatest knights who ever lived—and you are bound by the code of chivalry. You are here to obtain the Holy Grail, not look upon your Master like some lecherous cur!_

Saber looked down, and he suddenly felt as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped on him.

With no small amount of shame, he realized he would need a cold shower in the very near future.

_I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Shira._

* * *

Dinner was an awkward affair for Saber and Shira that night. Shira forced herself to focus on the meal, but she barely registered the taste of the Chinese food Rin had prepared; she was too busy trying not to look in Saber's direction, certain she would end up blushing if she did. Saber was just as determined to avoid Shira's gaze, preoccupying himself by eating much more than his fair share of food. Either Rin, Sakura, and Taiga were polite enough to not remark on how tense and quiet the pair were being, or they simply didn't notice.

Later that evening, Shira went to Rin's room for her first magic lesson. As it turned out, though, Rin spent more time lecturing about magic than actually trying to teach Shira anything. Tonight's lecture was about transferring magical energy from one source to another.

"Jewels are easy objects to transfer mana into," Rin was saying. "I've been stashing up gems and transferring any extra mana I have into them for years now. It's not something every magus does, though; that's what Magic Crests are for."

"Magic Crests?" Shira repeated, frowning; the term sounded a little familiar, though she couldn't say where she'd heard it before. From her father, maybe?

Rin nodded. "A Magic Crest is a series of circuits containing the entire magical knowledge of a magi family. It's passed down from one generation to the next and gets more and more powerful as the years go by."

Shira hummed thoughtfully. "That could explain why I'm only good at reinforcement."

"You mean you're not a legitimate successor of your family?" Rin questioned. "What, did your father die before he could pass his Crest onto you?"

"More or less," Shira admitted, "but I don't think Dad would've given me his Magic Crest anyway. He really didn't want me becoming a magus; heck, he was always saying I could give up my training whenever I wanted."

Rin stared at Shira as though she'd said that there was a race of tap-dancing rhinos living on the moon. "Are you _joking_?"

"Nope," Shira answered simply. "I think that was Dad's way of telling me not to get too caught up in all the rules and regulations of the magi." She then smiled a bit. "Or he just wanted his little girl to have a more normal life, now that I think about it."

"So, what you're trying to tell me," Rin said, her voice like acid, "is that your father didn't pass his Magic Crest onto you because he prioritized _fatherhood_ over the more significant role of being a magus?"

Shira's smile faded. "You say that like it's a crime. What's it to you, anyway?"

Rin huffed, turning away. "Shut up."

A moment of silence followed that brief, angry retort. Shira couldn't see why Rin would have such a negative reaction over Kiritsugu's reasoning for not giving his adopted daughter his Crest. Was it because Rin most likely had a much more orthodox upbringing than Shira did when it came to learning magecraft? Or was it because—?

Shira suddenly recalled her conversation with Rin after they'd destroyed most of the barrier's sigils, how bland and impersonal the latter was when talking about her own father's death.

 _Did Tohsaka not have a good relationship with him?_ Granted, as Shira got older, she hadn't spent as much time with Kiritsugu as she would've liked (he frequently went on mysterious business trips and never really told her the reason for them), but she never doubted that he loved her. Was it possible that Rin was jealous of Shira for having a father who cared about her? It was a strange thought.

"Tohsaka—" Shira began.

"Sorry," Rin muttered, turning to face her. "Just forget about it. Anyway," her voice went back to normal, "I guess we're done for now. Since you don't have a Magic Crest, that changes my plans for how to teach you."

"Okay, then," Shira said, standing up and making her way to leave the room. Before she could open the door, Rin continued talking.

"Oh, by the way, Shira, what was with you screaming earlier?"

Shira grimaced, resisting the urge to groan. So it _had_ been too much to hope for that Rin hadn't noticed the tension between her and Saber at dinner.

She turned around to face the other girl, laughing nervously. "You heard that, huh?"

"I think even a deaf person heard you screaming your head off," Rin deadpanned. "Something about Saber being a pervert, is that right?"

Shira scowled. "Well, if you must know, he walked into the bathroom just as I was getting in the shower. I'm sure it'll blow over quickly, though." _I hope. Or pray._

Rin merely smirked. "And if it doesn't, you still have to train with him again tomorrow."

"Now it's _your_ turn to shut up." Shira proceeded to exit Rin's room without waiting for a reply.


	11. A Chance Encounter and the Blood Fort

Any hopes Shira had about things getting back to normal (or as normal as they ever were) between herself and Saber were dashed the next morning at breakfast. Although the tension wasn't nearly as thick as it had been last night, Shira and Saber barely spoke to each other; any words they exchanged were brief at best.

It wasn't long after breakfast was over that the second training session in the dojo began. Just like before, Shira was not able to land one blow on Saber, who attacked and disarmed her more times than she wanted to count, but she was grateful that the sparring gave her something else to focus on. The more time Shira spent crossing shinais with Saber, the less time she spent dwelling on the shower incident, and she wouldn't have been surprised if it was the same for him.

Unfortunately, it couldn't last.

"I believe that is enough for today, Shira," Saber said three hours later.

"Okay," Shira agreed, huffing painfully as she sat up from where Saber had sent her falling to the floor after she'd attempted to exploit an opening he most likely deliberately left.

She lifted her head to look at Saber, whose expression was impassive. A few seconds of silence passed, and Shira quickly averted her gaze as the awkwardness returned.

"Um..." she began, groping for anything to say, "it'll be lunch soon. I saw that we're running out of food, and it'd be no good if we went to the fridge and there was nothing to eat. I'll go to the shopping district to get us something...you know, if you don't mind..."

Her voice trailed off. The truth was that the refrigerator wasn't as bare as she made it sound, but a trip to the shopping district was a good excuse to get out of the house and—her insides gave a guilty squirm—away from Saber.

"I don't mind at all," came Saber's reply. Shira looked up again to see that his gaze wasn't directed at her; instead, he was staring out into space, appearing about as awkward as she felt.

 _What happened last night must've affected him pretty badly,_ Shira thought as she left the dojo after telling Saber she'd be back in a while. _He didn't even insist on going with me in case I ran into trouble._

She went to the shed to get a bike, and once she was on her way to town, she made a mental note to talk things out with Saber as soon as possible.

* * *

It took barely ten minutes for Shira to pedal her way to the shopping district, and another quarter of an hour to buy groceries. When she exited the store, she saw a nearby stall selling snacks out of the corner of her eye and decided she had enough yen to buy a taiyaki.

With that done, Shira went to where she had parked her bike outside the grocery store, placing the two bags of purchases in the bike's basket. Just when she was about to get on the bike and go back home (and hopefully have that talk with Saber), she felt someone lightly tugging on her shirt.

 _Who could that—?_ Shira let out a short yelp before she could complete the thought as she turned around to see who it was, backing away so quickly that her bike toppled over.

Hair as white as snow, eyes as red as blood, and dressed from head to toe in rich purple velvet—Berserker's Master!

Suddenly, Shira dearly wished that Saber _had_ insisted on accompanying her—gosh, why did things have to be so weird between them—but no, she couldn't think of Saber now, not now when an enemy Master was standing right in front of her—!

"Hello, miss." The little girl curtsied politely. "I'm glad to see that you're not dead yet."

Shira opened and closed her mouth several times. "Y-you!" she finally managed to exclaim. "Don't tell me you plan to fight me here?"

The girl giggled, completely at ease. "Of course not, silly. We're not supposed to fight when the sun's up; that would be against the rules!"

"Right, right. Uh..." Words momentarily deserted Shira; just why in the world was this little Master talking cheerfully with her as though she hadn't ordered her Servant to kill Saber several nights ago? "What was your name again?"

"My name is Ilyasviel von Einzbern, but you can call me Ilya for short." Ilya beamed happily. "I think our relationship is strong enough to warrant that much."

...What the heck was this girl talking about?

"You gonna tell me your name, miss?" Ilya prompted when Shira didn't reply.

The redhead pursed her lips. "My name's Shira Emiya," she said curtly.

Ilya continued smiling innocently. "Shira Amniya?"

"Shira _Emiya_."

"Shira Miya?"

"Shira _Emiya_!"

"Shirou Emiya?"

 _For Pete's sake, that's a boys' name!_ "You know what? Just call me Shira." And with that, Shira turned away to get her bike upright, gathering her groceries (thank God she hadn't decided to buy something breakable, like a carton of eggs) and the paper bag containing the taiyaki and putting them in the bike's basket for the second time.

She started walking back home, pulling her bike along; Ilya followed her and went on talking.

"I left Berserker at home today, and you don't have Saber with you, so we're even, right?"

Shira stopped walking to look at Ilya suspiciously. "What are you playing at here?"

"I just felt like talking to you," Ilya stated brightly as she stepped next to the redhead.

"You want to talk to me?" Shira asked incredulously. Somehow, she doubted that Ilya simply wanted to chat with her; in all likelihood, this was just a ploy to catch her off guard and Ilya would try to kill her the instant she was in a false sense of security.

What was that American saying? "You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar"?

Ilya, meanwhile, was oblivious to where Shira's thoughts were going. "Of course! Real kids sit together and talk, don't they?"

Shira snorted. "We're _Masters_ , in case you've forgotten. And besides, you attacked me once; as far as I'm concerned, that makes us enemies."

"No one's good enough to be my enemy," Ilya chirped, "but if you don't make me mad, I'll let you leave without a scratch."

"You're insane, kid." Shira jerked her head forward, preparing to continue on home. "This conversation is over."

But before she could go more than a couple of paces, Ilya spoke again, sounding sad for the first time since the encounter began.

"What did I do wrong? Why don't you like me?"

 _You're a Master in the Grail War. You tried to kill Saber. What do you_ think _?_ But Shira's angry thoughts stopped in their tracks as she looked at Ilya again. In contrast to the cheery behavior from not even a minute ago, the young, white-haired girl now stood with her shoulders slumped and her gaze downward, hurt evident in her red eyes.

It occurred to Shira that Ilya could be a very good actress and decided to use the "kicked puppy" routine once she realized the "innocent little girl" act wasn't working. But even so, Shira found herself softening. Was it truly out of the realm of possibility that Ilya genuinely wanted to talk to her, regardless of their status as Masters? The sadness she was displaying seemed real enough, but again, Ilya could simply be toying with Shira.

After a few more seconds of thought, Shira sighed. "All right, I'll hang out with you. Happy now?"

"Yep!" Ilya was suddenly all smiles again; she hurried up the road and turned to face Shira. "Hey, come on! If you don't keep up, I'll leave you behind, Shira!"

As Ilya continued running, giggling all the while, Shira shook her head before following her, wondering what she'd gotten herself into this time.

* * *

Ilya led Shira to the small park near the shopping district. Shira sat down on a bench, her bike close by, watching as Ilya tried to keep her balance as she walked across a seesaw.

"So, let me guess," Shira spoke. "You want me to answer questions about Saber?" Ilya might not have plans to attack her right then and there, but that didn't mean she didn't have ulterior motives.

But Ilya immediately dismissed the notion. "No; that stuff is boring. There's gotta be something better to talk about."

 _Okay, so maybe she really does just want to talk,_ Shira thought. "What do you want to talk about, then?"

Ilya hummed. "Oh, I don't know. I don't really get to talk to people very much." She got off the seesaw and walked towards Shira. "You probably talk to people a lot, so you can pick the subject. Don't normal girls spend a lot of time talking with each other?"

Shira remained silent as Ilya sat next to her on the bench. It was true that she'd spent quite a bit of time making small talk with Taiga, Sakura, and Ayako, moreso before the Grail War began, but she wasn't sure if school or what to have for a next meal would be very interesting topics for Ilya.

A sudden breeze passed through the park, causing Ilya to give a start.

"Feeling cold, Ilya?" Shira asked, putting a hand on the shivering girl's arm and rubbing it lightly.

"A little," Ilya admitted. "You know, I really hate the cold."

"Winters here aren't usually too bad," Shira said, "but the wind's been chilly lately." She paused. "So, Ilya, where did you come from? You have a pretty aristocratic-sounding name."

Ilya smiled at that. "It doesn't just _sound_ aristocratic; it _is_ aristocratic. I was born in the old Einzbern Castle, where it was always very cold."

"But wouldn't you at least be used to the cold by now?"

"It's not that I'm not used to it; I just love being warm much more than being cold. Except for the snow," Ilya added. "My daddy said the snow matched my hair color perfectly."

"I can see why," Shira said. "That hair of yours makes you look like a snow fairy."

"I know," Ilya agreed, nodding eagerly. "I got it from my mother; she looked like a snow fairy, too."

Shira stared at Ilya as the latter giggled. The little girl sitting here chatting with her was a far cry from the bloodthirsty, ruthless Master she had encountered merely five nights ago. Really, it was like Ilya was a whole different person.

Ilya's young voice broke her out of her thoughts. "So, Shira, what good stuff did you inherit from your father? And don't say a Magic Crest; I'm talking about what you got from him as your father, not as a magus."

Shira frowned. "From my dad, huh?" _Funny; I would've expected her to ask if I inherited anything from my mother—not that I can actually remember my mother, but still._ "That's a little different. See, I didn't get any physical traits from him like you got from your mom, but..."

She paused thoughtfully. "I got a house to live in, for starters. And my surname, for another. And..." _My life. I was about to die after that fire, and Kiritsugu found me and saved me._ "...that's about it. They might not be genetic traits, but a home and an identity are just as good to inherit."

"True." Ilya smiled happily, then sobered. "But from what you said, does that mean you didn't get a Magic Crest? So, you're not really a Master, then?"

"No, I'm still a Master," Shira explained, "but I'm basically a half-baked one who doesn't have a Crest or a proper family line. What about you, Ilya? Aren't you a magus?"

Ilya shook her head. "I'm a Master, but no one's gone and taught me any magic."

"Really?" Shira questioned. "Does that mean you didn't get a Magic Crest either? But you come from a noble family, right?"

"Yeah," Ilya answered, "but isn't a Crest something you need to have in order to be a Master?"

"I have no idea." Shira furrowed her brow in confusion. _So Ilya's in a similar situation as Matou: being a Master without being a magus._ Still, something seemed off. "Why do I get the feeling that we're not talking about the same thing?"

"What do you mean?" Ilya wanted to know.

"Never mind," Shira said quickly, deciding to change the subject. "So, Ilya, where are you staying now?"

"That way," Ilya replied, pointing east. Shira looked up to see that the other girl was indicating the large forest in the distance. "There's a big, Western-styled house deep in the forest, and I was told to live there during the Holy Grail War." She smiled cheerfully. "I sneaked out when no one was looking. Sella and Leysritt are my maids, but they're really bossy sometimes. They always lock me in my room because they say the cold is bad for my health, so being outside today is like a special treat for me."

 _I guess she wasn't kidding about not getting to talk to people very often,_ Shira thought with a pang of sympathy. Without stopping to think why, she reached for the paper bag in her bike's basket, taking the taiyaki from the bag as Ilya looked on in puzzlement.

"What's that?" she asked.

Shira held out the fish-shaped cake to Ilya. "You've never had a taiyaki before?"

"No." The white-haired girl was now looking hesitant. "Is it okay if I have a bite?"

"Sure," Shira replied.

That one word was all it took for Ilya to accept the taiyaki. "This is yummy!" she said in between bites. "Thanks!"

Shira chuckled a bit at her enthusiasm. Sitting here and talking with Ilya in a moment where fighting wasn't an immediate issue was a little similar to how she'd felt yesterday with Saber in the dojo after they'd finished training—similar, but not quite the same.

 _It's kind of like having a little sister,_ she realized. _A little sister who's several years younger, anyway._ Sakura had gradually become like a sister to Shira since their friendship began a year ago, but Ilya gave off a more obvious "little sister" vibe.

Ilya had just finished the taiyaki when a rumbling growl could be heard in the distance. Shira gave a start at the sound, while Ilya quickly stood up.

"I gotta go! Berserker's waking up!"

And with that, Ilya ran away, leaving Shira alone in the park.

* * *

As Shira finally rode back home with her groceries in tow, she decided against mentioning that she'd run into Ilya to Saber or Rin. After all, Ilya hadn't attacked her or even really threatened her; instead, she was friendly, playful, and acted as any little girl would. There was no need for Shira to say anything about her encounter with Ilya simply because there was nothing to tell.

"Saber, I'm home," she called out as she entered the estate. "Saber?"

Shira frowned slightly as she went to the kitchen and set the groceries down on the counter. She hadn't heard anything to indicate that Saber even knew she was back. Was he in his room? Or maybe the dojo?

 _It can't hurt to look._ Shira left the kitchen and went into the hall. She was about to head to her room when the bathroom door opened.

"Shira, you have returned," Saber greeted. Clearly, he had just taken a bath; he had a towel in hand and his blond hair was damp and messier than usual.

Shira started at the sound of his voice. "H-hey, Saber. I was just looking for you." She paused. "Um, you were taking a bath?" It was a stupid question, but it was the only thing she could think to say.

"Yes, I was," Saber answered, his expression unreadable.

"Oh." An awkward silence followed Shira's monosyllabic response. She looked down as her face flushed with heat at the idea of Saber in the bath.

She mentally shook herself and brought her gaze to her Servant again, deciding that now was a good time as any to clear the air.

"Saber, listen," she said, "I'm sorry about what happened last night. I shouldn't have screamed at you like that. You know I wasn't actually gonna use a Command Seal on you."

"No, I should be the one apologizing." Saber bowed slightly in humility. "You were right; I should have knocked first before assuming the bathroom was not occupied. I invaded your privacy, and for that, I am sorry."

"Apology accepted." Shira smiled warmly as the weight on her shoulders lifted. _Now that was relatively painless._ "Well, I guess I better get started on lunch, then."

* * *

"Show me how you'd reinforce this," Rin instructed that evening in her room, placing a small, antique lamp in front of Shira.

"Okay." Shira slowly placed a hand on the bulb and closed her eyes. _Trace, on._

Her magic circuits hummed to life.

_Basic structure, established. Components, determined. Basic structure, altered._

Mana started to flow into the bulb.

_Components, reinfor—_

The bulb broke; Shira opened her eyes and cursed softly at the sight of the shattered glass.

"Unbelievable," Rin commented with the slightest hint of scorn.

"What, that I screwed up?" Shira asked tartly. "It's not that unbelievable; obviously, this spell hates me."

Rin rolled her eyes. "I was talking about how sloppy that was. You're just lucky that I came prepared for this." She reached into her bag, pulled out a can, and grabbed a small red gem from the can. "Here, swallow this."

Shira accepted the gem, frowning in confusion. " _Swallow_ it?" she repeated.

"Yes." Rin's voice left no room for argument.

Reluctantly, Shira did what she was told. She threw her head back and popped the gem into her mouth, nearly choking as she swallowed as quickly as she could.

"Ugh, Tohsaka, why'd—" But Shira interrupted herself with a pained grunt, a burning fire coursing through her body. Her vision became blurry, and her heart thudded against her ribcage. She heard Rin speak as if from a long distance away.

"It might be painful, but try to deal with it. If you're a magus, you can control your mana by simply switching your natural circuits on and off. Every time you create an artificial magic circuit, you're wasting energy, so by swallowing that gem, the switch inside your body is forced to turn on."

"A switch...?" Shira managed to ask as the burning feeling finally began to subside.

"You'll soon understand," Rin said. "In order to activate a magic circuit, it helps if you can visualize a switch in your head."

 _That doesn't really explain how a switch can be in my body,_ Shira thought, irked that Rin neglected that little detail. Out loud, though, she straightened up and asked, "Is this the part where I thank you?"

Rin turned to rummage in her bag before answering. "No need to thank me. We _are_ working together, so if you're incompetent, it causes me problems. Alright, back to it," she added, retrieving another lamp and setting it down next to the broken one. "Reinforcement magic is beginners' stuff compared to projection."

"Projection?" Shira repeated. "What's that?"

"Well, to keep it brief, projection duplicates things," Rin explained. "The duplicated object is created from your own mana, so the degree of difficulty is much higher. However, anything you project will disappear after only a few seconds, and you don't have the talent for it, anyway, so let's work on you mastering reinforcement first."

* * *

In the end, no matter how many times Shira tried to reinforce a lamp, it always broke. After she had broken about thirty lamps, Rin finally decided to call it a night, and Shira wasted no time in leaving the older girl's room before she could get criticized for her failures again.

At present, Shira was sitting outside on the porch, allowing the wintry air to cool her frustration.

 _It's just because of this switch thing,_ she told herself. _Once I get the hang of controlling my mana, reinforcement should get easier, right?_

Shira was torn away from her thoughts by the sound of approaching footsteps. Her expression soured as she saw that it was Archer.

"So, you managed to open your magic circuits," the older woman stated, a condescending edge to her smile. "How long did it take Rin?"

"What are _you_ doing here?" Shira demanded. "If you're gonna complain about me being an inconvenience to your Master, then save your breath."

Archer merely chuckled in amusement. "Rin might be a genius, but that genius of hers prevents her from understanding the problems of an ordinary person. She doesn't realize that normal teaching methods won't work on a talentless child like you."

Shira bristled. "If you have a point, get to it."

"I'm only going to say this once, so pay attention." Seriousness replaced Archer's initial mockery. "When it comes to fighting, Shira Emiya doesn't have a prayer. The only thing you can do is visualize. If you come across an opponent you can't defeat on your own, then visualize something that will allow you to defeat him." She turned away from Shira. "This is the only skill you have; I suggest you perfect it."

The glare on Shira's face faded slightly; as much as she'd love to simply dismiss whatever Archer said, she found herself thinking that what the swordswoman was saying was something she shouldn't forget.

"My, am I getting soft?" Archer mused, the bitter smile evident in her voice even if Shira couldn't see it on her face. "I'm giving advice to someone I so desperately want to kill."

Wordlessly, Shira watched as Archer went into spirit form. Perhaps the very last thing the latter said should have frightened the former to the core, but Shira had already experienced almost getting killed by Lancer and Rider, so the only thought running through her mind was:

_Jeeze, what the hell is her problem? Is she this irritating with Tohsaka?_

* * *

The next morning's sparring session was just as one-sided as the first two. No matter how aggressively Shira rushed at Saber, he was always ready with a stronger counterattack. Honestly, the only thing positive about this bout of training was that there was no awkwardness between them after it was done. On the other hand, Rin (who had decided to skip school today as well) had practically ordered Shira to commence with magic lessons as soon as Saber declared the sparring over, so maybe any discomfort just hadn't had a chance to settle in.

When the girls entered Rin's room, Shira stifled a groan as she saw that the majority of the floor was covered with no less than forty lamps.

"We'll continue from where we left off," Rin said. "Reinforce these lamps."

Shira stared at all the lamps in disbelief. _Right, because I made_ such _good progress last night._ "Please tell me you're joking."

Rin went on as though Shira hadn't said anything. "I'm going out for a little while. I expect you to be finished by the time I get back. Have fun."

A sigh of resignation escaped from Shira's mouth as Rin left the room. _Well, practice does make perfect, doesn't it?_ she thought, sitting down in front of the lamps. _I can't get better if I just give up before I even try._

She selected a lamp at random and placed her hand on the bulb. She took a deep, calming breath, then closed her eyes in concentration.

"Trace, on." Her magic circuits flipped opened, filling with mana. Slowly but surely, the mana flowed into the bulb.

Shira's heart quickened in anticipation. _It's working, it's work—!_

The bulb broke.

"No!" Shira cried, her eyes flying open. After sparing a few seconds to stare at the glass shards on the floor, she put a hand on the bulb of another lamp, trying for another attempt at reinforcement.

About an hour and a half later, thirty more lamps were broken, and only nine had been successfully reinforced. Shira figured that should satisfy Rin for now.

Shira jumped slightly as she heard the sudden ring of the telephone. Wondering who could be calling, she hurried to the living room and picked up the phone from where it sat on a small table.

She pressed the phone to her ear. "Hello; Emiya residence."

"Hello, Emiya."

Shira froze. "Matou?!"

The sneer in Shinji's voice was almost audible. "Yes, it's me, Emiya. You're not at school again today. Are you not feeling well?"

"Oh, like you care. How the hell did you get my number?" Shira demanded, her grip on the phone tightening.

"There's no need to be so temperamental," Shinji said, ignoring her question entirely. "I'm only calling because I have some information I think you'll find profoundly important. Is Tohsaka with you?"

"No, she just stepped out," Shira answered, keeping her voice even. _Is this guy trying to pull my leg?_

"Good. I wanted to speak to you alone, anyway. Come to school as quickly as possible."

The call ended before Shira could say anything more, the dial tone filling her ears. She hung up the phone, biting her lower lip. Shinji was up to something, no doubt about it. All that "important information" stuff could very well be a pack of lies. Dare she take him up on his invitation? It sounded like a trap, but then again—

 _The barrier!_ Was that what Shinji's call was all about? Did he plan to lure her to school, then activate the barrier? But if he did that, everyone on campus would be—!

Without a second thought, Shira ran to her room to change clothes, throwing on her uniform as quickly as she could, and proceeded to race out of the estate and towards school. She realized she was rushing headlong into a trap, but she didn't care—she _couldn't_ care, not when peoples' lives were at stake.

She stopped running only when she reached the school's entrance, huffing and clutching a stitch in her side. A glance at the building showed that everything looked normal. _But where is everybody?_ Shira thought as she went inside school and walked up a few flights of stairs. _Break should've started by now._

It wasn't long until Shira arrived in an eerily deserted hallway. Before she could resume walking, however, a sudden, dizzying nausea assaulted her senses, her body breaking into a sweat as though she had spent hours inside a sauna. _W-what...?_ She doubled over painfully, her breath coming out in heavy gasps, and struggled over to a window. Through streaming eyes, she could see the sky was tinged in a blood-red color.

So her suspicions about Shinji activating the barrier were right.

With some effort, Shira moved away from the window and stumbled to the nearest classroom. She opened the door, and what she saw caused her body temperature, already unnaturally hot, to go through the roof.

Many students, plus a teacher, were lying on the floor. Some were already unconscious, but others were convulsing, even hyperventilating, and—was it just her, or was the skin of a few students _melting_? Shira let out a shuddering gasp at the sight, feeling sick to her stomach. _These people...they'll die if I don't do anything..._

Just like ten years ago, just like when the fire was burning, burning, _burning_ and people were begging to be saved and no one listened, _she_ hadn't listened—

At once, Shira forcibly swallowed the bile rising in her throat. _Focus on the present; you can't save anyone if you get lost in a flashback!_

She turned away from the classroom and felt her left hand burn. Looking at her hand, she saw her Command Seals glowing brightly—an enemy was approaching.

"Hey, Emiya. Glad to see you're in good health today."

 _Speak of the devil, and he shall appear,_ Shira thought, looking up and across the hallway to see Shinji standing there, as casual as if he were out for an afternoon stroll.

She glared at him with as much vehemence as she could muster. "You bastard, Matou."

"Oh, so you don't like my handiwork?" Shinji asked, feigning hurt. "But I did it all for you. I activated the barrier as soon as I knew you were on your way. It wasn't easy to get the timing right, you know. Too soon, and you'd escape; too late, we'd bump into each other first and ruin everything."

A leer crossed Shinji's face. "It's important for me to see the life drain out of your eyes. With that in mind, I had to time everything just right."

 _I'd tell you how sick in the head you are, but I'm not wasting my energy,_ Shira thought. "Let me guess, you lied about having important info for me. And you also lied about not wanting to fight." _Not that I believed you, anyway._

Shinji was no longer leering. "Hey, you and Tohsaka brought this on yourselves!" he snarled, pointing at Shira accusingly. "I ask you to fight with me, not against me, and _both of you_ turned me down!" He folded his arms, his usual smugness replacing his sudden anger. "I didn't want to activate something of this magnitude unless I truly had to."

"Well, then _deactivate_ it!" Shira snapped. " _Now_!"

"I'm sorry; you're in no position to order me around. But...if you _really_ want me to turn it off..." Shinji smirked, slow and dirty, "why not show me what you can do with your tongue?"

 _He wants me to do WHAT?!_ Shira actually flinched back at those words; the meaning behind them couldn't have been clearer than if it was flat-out stated. "You're disgusting."

Shinji remained unfazed. "And you're just the same as Fujimura; neither of you seem to know your place."

The blood in Shira's veins suddenly ran cold. _Oh, God, Fuji-nee!_ "What did you do to her?" she demanded, using an icily calm tone that would've made Saber proud.

"After I activated the barrier," Shinji replied, "Fujimura could still get around fairly well. Everyone else was dropping like flies, but she somehow managed to hobble her way over to me. Then she started spewing out garbage about calling an ambulance or something." He chuckled darkly. "Well, I certainly wasn't calling any ambulance, but she was so obnoxiously persistent that I do _something_ that I connected my boot with her head. After that, she went down and stayed down."

He let out a full-blown laugh, oblivious to the fact that Shira had been trembling with rage all throughout his speech. "I wouldn't be surprised if that did her in for good."

At that moment, it was as though a hammer had struck down in Shira's head. Her magic circuits were not humming with mana—they were _roaring_ , filling her body with magical energy eager to be used as she saw fit.

"I'm not saying this again," Shira growled. "Shut. The barrier. _Down_."

Shinji gestured towards the windows. "Tear it down yourself if it bothers you so much."

Shira's body tensed. "If that's the way you want it, fine. Don't say I didn't try to be nice!" She charged towards Shinji.

"You really are stupid, Emiya." Shinji held out a small book, and three shadowy tendrils of darkness leapt from the floor and shot forward.

But Shira wouldn't be deterred. " _You're_ the stupid one here, Matou!" She continued running, the three shadows passing harmlessly around her. "Compared to Saber's training regime, this is less than nothing!"

For the very first time, Shinji was not smirking in arrogance. In fact, as Shira got closer to him, she could see that he was looking terrified.

"No, please!" he cried, all superiority forgotten. "Get back!"

Shira was almost there—Shinji let out a scream—

 _Clang_!

And Shira stopped short and pulled back as Rider suddenly appeared, brandishing her chain-like daggers in each hand. _Damn it, I almost had him!_

"Excellent, Rider," Shinji said, regaining some confidence. "Now take her down."

With those four words, Rider leapt forward, throwing a dagger. Shira had only enough time to lift her arm to protect her face, resulting in the dagger piercing her wrist. In quick succession, Rider had stabbed Shira in the shoulder, leg, and side, not allowing the redhead time to formulate any countermeasure.

In seconds, Shira had been forced to her knees, grunting in pain.

"What are you doing, Rider?!" Shinji snapped impatiently. "Finish her off already!"

Shira straightened up, ignoring her injuries. But before she could do anything, Rider had lunged for her again; she couldn't resist screaming as the black-clad Servant sliced at her neck.

She vaguely heard the sound of the tip of Rider's dagger breaking.

"That's odd," came Rider's comment as Shira pressed a hand to her neck. "For whatever reason, my blade can't kill her." Rider paused for only a fraction of a second. "In that case..."

Rider launched a powerful kick at Shira. Glass shattered as the redhead found herself knocked out the nearest window. Her arms and legs flailed uselessly as she fell through the air, the red-tinted sky filling her vision.

_Is this...how I'm going to die?_

Was Shira going to die now? Was she going to die and leave all those people at the mercy of Shinji and Rider? Was she going to die without saving anyone?

No. No, that was unacceptable. It didn't matter that Shira was wounded, that she was currently falling from a third-floor window. Taiga, the other teachers, and the students _would_ be saved, Shinji and Rider _would_ be defeated, but Shira couldn't do it alone.

If there was ever a time to use a Command Seal, now was definitely it.

" _Saber_!" Shira cried out, her Command Seals glowing. " _Saber, come forth_!"

One Command Seal disappeared, and Saber, fully armored, appeared in a column of light, caught Shira bridal-style in midair, and skidded to a halt on the ground.

"Shira—" Saber began after he set her down.

"No time for details," Shira interrupted urgently. "Matou and Rider have activated the barrier—we have to stop them!"

"But you are wounded," Saber protested as he helped her to her feet. "Let me—"

"That's not important now," Shira cut him off again. "Just focus on Rider; you're the only one who can beat her."

Saber still looked concerned. "Shira, if your injuries are not treated—"

If she were truly honest with herself, Shira would admit to being flattered by Saber's worry, but that was something they really didn't have time for.

"Saber, my injuries are not important," she repeated firmly. "This barrier has to be taken down before Fuji-nee and everyone else are killed. If I have to use another Command Seal—"

"No, you don't," Saber said quickly. "I will do as you wish, Master."

Shira nodded shortly. "Take out Rider. I'll deal with Matou."

And with that, Saber and Shira hurried into the school building, making their way upstairs to the third-floor hallway. Without any warning, Rider lunged towards them. Saber shoved Shira out of harm's way and deflected Rider's dagger with his sword.

As Shira raced after Shinji (who could be heard yelling at his Servant for not killing the redhead when he told her to), Rider charged forward again, throwing a dagger at Saber. The knight deflected the dagger again, but his opponent threw the second dagger at that same instant, managing to wrap the chain around his wrists. The next few seconds consisted of a twisted tug-of-war, ending when Saber grabbed the chain and launched himself at Rider, who blocked his own attack. Undaunted, Saber struck at Rider again and again, his flurry of blows forcing her back.

Meanwhile, Shira was still hurrying after Shinji.

"You can't run forever, Matou!" she shouted.

"Stay away from me, you crazy bitch!" Shinji's voice was high with fear. As he continued running madly through the hall, he knocked over a janitor's bucket containing a few mops. Three more shadows shot out from his book, and Shira stopped only to grab a mop, break it in half, and reinforce the handle into solid steel. As the shadows rushed towards her, she deflected them away with her hastily constructed weapon.

The look of abject terror on Shinji's face as Shira shot a glare at him was priceless.

The chase resumed, but it wasn't long before the end of the hallway was reached. At last, Shira caught up to Shinji and proceeded to do what she'd subconsciously wanted to do for years: she slapped him in the face—hard.

She didn't give him a chance to recover as she grabbed him by his throat.

"Shut down the barrier!" Shira ordered.

"Yeah, like I'm gonna do that!" Shinji gasped out. "You think I'm just gonna do whatever you tell me to?!"

Shira tightened her grip. She never wanted to have to do this, but the stupid bastard was leaving her with very few options.

"If you don't shut this down, I'll kill you." She mentally apologized to Sakura. "That'll solve a few problems."

The barest hint of a sardonic smile crossed Shinji's lips. "Heh; you're bluffing. You couldn't kill a fly, let alone me."

Shira's eyes narrowed. "What exactly has your family taught you, Matou?" she asked rhetorically. "Don't you know the saying, 'To be a magus is to walk with death'? It means that a magus must be prepared to kill other magi. So, either you turn off this barrier _right now_ , or I kill you. It's your choice."

Shinji squawked as Shira squeezed his throat some more. "Okay, okay! You win, Emiya! Let me go! Rider! RIDER! SHUT DOWN THE BLOOD FORT!"

In seconds, the barrier vanished, the sky returning to its natural blue color, but Shira's hand remained around Shinji's throat.

"Alright, you got what you wanted!" Shinji exclaimed. "Let me _go_ already!"

"Give up your Command Seals," Shira ordered. "Do that and we won't have to fight again."

Shinji's mouth dropped open. "Are you insane?! There's no way I'm gonna do that! If I give up my Command Seals, I won't be able to control Rider! Without her, I'm as good as—!"

"Then go to Kotomine Church," Shira said. "It's his job to protect any Master who's out of the War."

"Shira!"

She turned her head upon hearing Saber's voice, then abruptly let go of Shinji and took a few steps back as Rider suddenly zipped to her Master's side.

"We need to get out of here," Rider told Shinji coolly, ignoring his spluttering.

"Shira, get back!" Saber called again as he began hurrying to her. "Rider intends to release the mana she was using to maintain the barrier!"

"What do you mean?" Shira wanted to know.

"What secrets have you been keeping from me, Rider?!" Shinji demanded. "Whatever you're planning, don't do it! You're no match against Emiya's Servant; it'll only get you killed!"

"I know all too well that I'm no match for Saber," Rider said, "but my Noble Phantasm surpasses all other Servants'. It doesn't matter who they are; there is none who can match the blinding speed I'm about to unleash."

With a smirk, Rider held out her dagger—and stabbed herself through the neck without any hesitation. Bright red blood spurted in all directions, forming a solid, scarlet sphere in front of Rider and Shinji. A red, glowing magic circle etched itself onto the sphere, followed by a burst of white light.

Saber put a protective arm in front of Shira, squinting his eyes against the light's brightness. A huge pair of white, feathery wings burst into existence, and—

Shira was pulled to the ground by Saber as a huge _boom_ sounded and another flash of white light engulfed the area. She closed her eyes as a terrible gust of wind coursed through the hallway—and then it was over. Shira and Saber got up to see the hall completely destroyed—the windows were broken, the walls were ripped to pieces, and the floor was riddled with debris—and no sign of Shinji and Rider.

"She was true to her word," Saber stated. "She only used her Noble Phantasm as a means to escape."

But Shira was barely listening; she sank to her knees in sudden exhaustion, her magic circuits giving out on her now that there was no more reason at present to fight. The mana that had been flowing through her body disappeared, and the wounds she'd been ignoring chose that moment to throb.

The last thing Shira heard before blacking out was Saber calling out her name.

* * *

The sun was still shining when Shira came to. She found herself back in her room at the estate, and although her wounds had been bandaged up, they were almost completely healed, just like the last couple of times she had sustained injuries. When she questioned Rin about what happened at school after she'd passed out, the older girl explained that many people had been taken to the hospital, but no one was in serious danger. School would also be cancelled until repairs to the building were completed.

It wasn't long after Shira woke up that she left her room to head for the dojo, thinking that she might find Saber there. Just as she thought, Saber was sitting in the dojo, still dressed in his armor.

"Saber," Shira spoke, walking over to him.

Saber looked up, his expression flat. "Hello, Shira. I am glad to see you are awake." He stood up; although his face was calm, Shira could see his eyes shining with reproach.

"...You're going to scold me, aren't you?" she guessed.

"Where do I even begin?" Saber's tone was now tinged with frustration. "You deliberately saw an enemy without me. You proceeded to fight that enemy by yourself. You _only_ summoned me when you were _about to die_." He was now sounding quite agitated. "What if you had not used the Command Seal in time? What then, Shira? I would certainly not be talking to you at this moment!"

"Saber, I—"

But he talked over her. " _Why_ must you make things so difficult for me?! Do you enjoy it?"

"No; I just—"

"Then explain." Saber fixed Shira with a stern gaze. "Explain to me why you do this."

There was a momentary pause as Shira stared back at Saber; finally, she sighed, bowing her head slightly. "I'm sorry." _I've had to apologize a lot lately._ "You're right; running after Matou like that was stupid, and I'm sorry I made you worry. I've been going about things the wrong way."

Saber frowned in confusion. "Shira, does this mean—?"

"I can't get through the Grail War alone," she continued. "If I'm going to beat the other Masters, I need your strength; I need _you_."

There was another pause as Saber digested what Shira had just told him. "I see," he said. "Then I assume you realize that your actions thus far have been a mistake. Going forward, I can count on you to back me up in a supporting role and let me do the fighting."

Shira's gaze snapped back to Saber. "I don't think so. I still don't want you getting hurt, but I need you to fight, so I'm going to be there next to you, fighting right by your side."

Saber's earlier frustration returned. "You _still_ insist on this?"

" _This_ isn't something I'm budging on," Shira informed him. "If I'm not fighting alone, then neither are you."

They stared at each other in silence, neither willing to look away as if doing so would mean one yielding to the other. At last, a small smile curled onto Saber's face.

"Well, at least you are consistent in your stubborn streak."

Shira had to chuckle at that.

"After all we have been through, I would hope you realize that I am your sword," Saber went on. "Who else but me should be the one to lend you strength?"

Without another word, Saber offered his hand to Shira, who clasped it firmly. It was a confirmation of the compromise they had just come to: neither Master nor Servant would be fighting alone, but stand together against their enemies.

"Hello? What's going on between you two?"

The moment shattered at the sound of Rin's voice. Shira jerked back, withdrawing her hand away from Saber's as though she'd been burned.

"Nothing!" she blurted out as Rin stepped into the dojo with a bundle of clothes in hand. "Nothing at all!"

"Really?" Rin raised an eyebrow. "Because it looked to me like you and Saber were holding hands. What, were you having some kind of strategy meeting behind my back?"

"Of course not," Saber assured her. "We would never do anything of the sort."

"What do you have there, Tohsaka?" Shira asked, desperate for a change in topic.

"Just Saber's clothes." Rin handed the aforementioned clothes over to the knight. "You be careful, now. When Shira summoned you and you transitioned to your armor, your clothes went flying everywhere."

Shira's face suddenly felt uncomfortably hot. _Stay out of the gutter, stay_ out _of the gutter..._

Saber looked over at the redhead. "You look overheated, Shira. Do you need some fresh air?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Shira insisted hurriedly, hoping her face hadn't flushed even more at the fact that Saber had noticed enough to comment. "I was just...thinking?"

She could've slapped herself for saying that.

"Thinking?" Saber repeated. "What about?"

Rin smirked. "Yeah, Shira, what about?"

Shira just scowled. _Like you don't know._


	12. The Sword of Promised Victory

"Oh, really? Just a case of exhaustion?" Shira laughed as she spoke over the phone the next morning. "Yep; that's totally normal for Fuji-nee." She paused. "Well, tell her I said hi. Thank you for everything."

"How is Taiga?" Saber asked, walking up to Shira as she hung up the phone.

"They say she's already asking for seconds at the hospital," Shira reported, still grinning. "I think she'll be just fine. I'd like to go visit her, but," she then became serious, "there's something more important we have to do."

It only took Saber a few seconds to understand where Shira was going with this. "You know, it's not imperative that we capture Rider's Master today."

"Saber," the redhead began warningly.

"If you are going to insist on fighting," Saber went on, undaunted, "you should at least wait until your body is healed first."

"My body's fine," Shira insisted. It wasn't entirely true (her wounds hadn't closed up all the way yet), but she was perfectly capable of moving around, and that was all that mattered. "What won't be fine is if Matou sets up another barrier. We have to separate him from Rider before that happens."

Saber frowned in thought. "Tell me, Shira, is this your motivation for fighting in this War? To avoid the victims like we had yesterday? Because you don't seem to care about defeating other Masters."

Shira shook her head. "Oh, trust me, I intend to hold Matou accountable for what he's done, but we have to defeat Rider first." A small smile appeared on her face. "And, well, why not prevent people from getting hurt? I think that's a pretty good motive for fighting."

She almost expected Saber to contradict her, to tell her that her way of thinking was ridiculous or childish. He certainly had been vocal about what he thought concerning her decision to not immediately attack Ryudou Temple, after all. But Saber only nodded.

"Very well," he said. "If that is what my Master commands, I will obey."

"Thanks, Saber."

* * *

"Heard you're going after Shinji," Rin said once she, Shira, and Saber had sat down at the dining room table. "So it's safe to assume that you have a good chance of beating him?"

"More than a good chance, I'd say," Shira responded. "Rider isn't nearly as powerful as Saber. If it comes to a one-on-one fight, I don't think Saber can lose." She frowned. "Then again..."

Rin eyed her pointedly. "Okay, what's wrong?"

"Even though Saber had driven Rider into a corner, she was still able to escape with Matou," Shira admitted. "She called it her Noble Phantasm."

Yes, now that Shira thought about it, maybe the chances of defeating Shinji and Rider once and for all weren't as good as she supposed. That intense wave of destruction Rider unleashed yesterday would've doubtlessly reduced her to a heap of dust if Saber hadn't pulled her to the ground. If Rider's Noble Phantasm—her ultimate attack—was so dangerous even though she was an inferior Servant compared to Saber, underestimating her wouldn't help anything.

Rin seemed to be thinking along similar lines. "Hmm. That would mean Rider's the kind of Servant whose Noble Phantasm surpasses her own capabilities."

"I was not able to verify this completely, Rin," Saber said, "but I believe the magic she uses is similar to yours."

"Well, that's strange," the black-haired girl told him, "because modern magecraft can't even come close to defeating someone like you."

"True enough," Saber agreed. "In the face of more powerful magecraft, the weaker magic becomes ineffective. The only types of magic capable of piercing my armor would be what you would call divine mysteries or Phantasmal Beasts."

"A magic user, then," Rin concluded. "So, Saber, are you suggesting that Rider is a magus?"

"No; I did not sense mana of that magnitude with her. Rider's Noble Phantasm has no relation to her personal abilities. It's probably not an Anti-Personnel Noble Phantasm, like Lancer's spear or the barrier concealing my sword."

"What do you mean by 'Anti-Personnel'?" Shira inquired.

"Ultimately, my Invisible Air and Lancer's Gae Bolg are merely tools designed to kill people," Saber explained. "No matter how powerful the mana or spells placed on them, they will never be anything stronger than an Anti-Personnel weapon."

"Okay." Shira nodded slowly. "But how is Rider's Noble Phantasm different?"

It was Rin who answered. "It means that hers must be Anti-Army. Anti-Personnel Noble Phantasms are like guns with unlimited ammo, while Anti-Army Noble Phantasms are like missiles with just a one-shot chance."

Shira's eyes widened in shock. "Then what are we supposed to do? A gun can't take out a missile! Oh," she snapped her fingers, "I get it. We have to beat Rider before she can get the chance to use her Noble Phantasm."

Rin's smile was like that of a teacher pleased with her student. "Very good, Shira. The longer the fight is, the more we get put at a disadvantage. Well, at least you've got that figured out." She stood up and walked to the door. "Sorry, but I can't be part of your little Shinji Search Squad."

"Why not?" Shira asked.

"I have some business to take care of," was all Rin said before leaving the room.

* * *

Shira and Saber stood in front of the Matou estate, the latter currently attempting to sense Shinji and Rider's presence.

"It is just as you thought," Saber reported, opening his eyes after a moment. "They are not here."

"Well, if I know one thing about Matou," Shira informed him, "it's that he won't take what happened yesterday lying down. He'll want revenge."

Saber frowned. "You truly think Rider's Master will erect another barrier so soon?"

Shira smiled grimly. "I don't think; I know. And once the barrier's set up, we'll be able to sense it. So, instead of looking for Matou—"

"Look for the barrier," Saber finished.

"Exactly." Shira turned away to look up the street. "Most likely, the barrier will be in New Town, someplace where there'd be a lot of people. Come on, Saber."

She made to hurry off, but Saber's voice stopped her.

"We do not have to go after him so soon. This is Sakura's house as well. Should we not at least stop to say hello to her?"

Shira cast her gaze on the Matou estate. Saber did have a point; they could afford to take a few minutes to see Sakura. Besides, it wasn't like she would be too indisposed; according to Rin, Sakura had only been slightly weakened by the barrier's activation, so she'd been one of the few who hadn't gone to the hospital.

But honestly, what could Shira say to her if she went along with Saber's suggestion? _"Hey, Sakura, how are you doing? Oh, I don't have many plans for today, aside from possibly killing your brother."_

Yeah...that wouldn't go over very well. Against all reason, Sakura cared about Shinji, and it would upset her terribly if she knew he just might end up getting killed by her best friend.

"We better not," Shira finally said. "The last thing I want to do is get Sakura involved in any of this."

* * *

The hours passed as Shira and Saber checked every large building they came across. Shira ignored the odd looks from passing townsfolk each time Saber held out his arm and closed his eyes, only caring about whether or not a barrier had been placed. But the result was always the same: Saber could sense no barrier, nor any kind of magical energy.

At present, the sun was setting. Saber and Shira had just finished checking out a bank and were about to continue on when the latter suddenly exhaled sharply, doubling over.

"Shira, is something wrong?"

She opened her mouth to say she was fine, just a little tired, but all that came out was a pained groan.

"Shira!" Saber rushed over to her, his voice urgent. He grabbed her hand and started pulling her.

"S-Saber," Shira stammered, "what are you doing? We haven't finishing checking all these buildings!"

Saber did not answer her as he continued pulling her in the direction of the park. After several minutes, though, Shira realized that he hadn't intended to go to the park at all. The place they were arriving at was filled with trees with bare branches and gray, dead grass.

_No..._

A sense of horror rose in Shira's chest, overriding any pain she was feeling from the injuries she still sustained.

_No, this can't be...!_

It was a place that Shira was very familiar with, even if the last time she'd physically been there was ten years ago.

_No...NO!_

Her eyes glazed over.

Her body stiffened.

All she could see was fire—cruel, heartless, burning fire. The flames were oppressive, the smoke was suffocating, people were dying, people would not be saved, she had to run—she had to run—she had to _run_ —

"Shira! Can you hear me?"

And Saber's voice freed her from the flashback.

Shira returned to reality; her face was drenched in sweat, her heart was racing a mile a minute, and her breath was coming out in heavy, ragged gasps. She belatedly realized that she was sitting on a bench, with Saber standing in front of her, his hands on her shoulders, so close that their noses were almost touching.

"Why did you bring me here?" Shira burst out, causing Saber to let go of her and take a step back, startled.

"My only intention was to have you rest a while," he said. "I feared your body would give out on you since it was clear to me that you were pushing yourself too far. I could never have foreseen that you would react in such a way."

Shira sighed as Saber sat down next to her, regretting how she'd snapped at him. She stared down at her lap so that she wouldn't have to look at her surroundings.

"How did I react?" She knew the answer, or at least could figure it out, but she wanted to hear Saber say it anyway.

"You went rigid where you stood," he told her calmly, as though PTSD-fueled incidents happened every day, "broke into a sweat, and were not focusing on anything. I wondered if perhaps you were about to have a fit."

"Sorry you had to see that," Shira mumbled. "It doesn't happen too often anymore, but it still happens sometimes."

"There is no need to apologize." Saber's voice became quieter. "I of all people know about personal demons." He paused. "May I ask what kind of connection you have to this place?"

 _Well, since you asked politely..._ "It was where I used to live when I was just a little kid," Shira explained, lifting her gaze to Saber. "Then there was this huge fire. My parents were killed and my house was destroyed, but then my dad came and saved my life." She looked down, not noticing the surprised expression on Saber's face. "He adopted me not long after that."

Shira smiled a little, letting herself remember the happiness she'd felt when Kiritsugu saved her, then later when he offered for her to live with him.

"I was told that this was a battleground for the last Grail War. It's kinda ironic that I survive that one just to become a Master in this one."

"Shira," Saber said slowly, "is this why you go to such lengths to prevent people from getting hurt? Because you yourself lost so much in the last War, you want to keep others from that same fate?"

"Maybe it's something even simpler than that," Shira replied, looking at Saber again thoughtfully. "I was thankful to Dad for saving me, but I knew I was the only one who survived the fire, and that's not an easy thing to live with. I couldn't save anyone that night, so the least I can do now is make sure nothing like that happens again."

 _Survivor's guilt,_ the phrase came unbidden to Saber's mind. _Shira feels guilty for living when so many others did not, so in order to "atone," she feels the need to save anyone and everyone._

"So as a consequence," the knight continued his thoughts out loud, "you have no interest in preserving your own life."

Shira's smile faded as confusion took over her features, prompting Saber to go on.

"You value others more than you value yourself. That is a very admirable quality, but you will come to regret it one day." He stared at her coolly. "You need to care about your own wellbeing far more than you do."

Saber abruptly changed the topic before Shira could say anything. "Let's go. I believe you have rested enough."

* * *

Night had fallen by the time Shira and Saber checked every main building in New Town. At present, the pair stood in a town square, Shira looking at a map of the city.

"Is there any place else you feel we should go?" Saber questioned.

Shira looked up with a slight frown. "Well, there's a factory up ahead. It couldn't hurt to see if a barrier's set up, but—"

She stopped speaking upon sensing a wave of magical energy.

"Shira?" Saber raised his eyebrows questioningly, silently asking if she had felt the sudden presence of mana as well.

She nodded quickly. "How close do you think it is?"

"Not very," Saber admitted. "I do not sense any barrier, but," he looked out into the spot where the mana was at its strongest, "we are definitely being watched. I will follow the magical energy. Stay on your guard, Master."

Several minutes passed in silence; the trail of mana led them to the office district. By some stroke of luck, most of the lights in the buildings were off, and very few people were walking in the streets. Even so, the mana—dark and intense—grew stronger with every step. Shira had no doubt that Rider was nearby, and that meant Shinji wouldn't be too far behind.

"But would they risk attacking here?" Shira wondered out loud, slowing her pace so that she was at least five steps behind Saber. "It'd be better in the park; that way, there'd be no—"

"Shira!" Saber leapt backward, deflecting the attack aimed for her head. As he landed on the ground, Shira looked up at the skyscraper. She could just make out Rider, her limbs splayed out spiderlike along the skyscraper's wall, about five stories above the street.

"You stay here," Saber told Shira after also spotting Rider. "I'll go after her."

Before Shira could even think about protesting, Saber jumped into the air again, his armor appearing in a flash of light, and—to Shira's amazement—ran _up_ the skyscraper to where Rider was. Immediately, Saber's invisible sword clashed with Rider's dagger, and the two Servants proceeded upward along the building's wall, presumably to the rooftop.

 _If Rider came from the roof, Matou must be there, too. And if I can make him give up his Command Seals—and do it fast—then the fight should be over before Rider can use her Noble Phantasm._ With that thought in mind, Shira disregarded what Saber said about staying put (how many times did she have to tell him that she refused to sit passively while he fought, for the love of God?), ran inside the building through the back door, and hurried to the nearest elevator.

Meanwhile, Saber and Rider continued their upward scaling of the skyscraper, the two combatants refusing to take their eyes off each other for even an instant. It was just as well, as they had not yet reached the roof before Rider threw a dagger at Saber's face. Saber deflected the weapon with his sword, leaping from one floor to the next. Again, Rider made to attack Saber, but the knight rushed forward and parried the dagger, the force of his blow sending them in opposite directions.

"Guess high places aren't to your advantage, are they, Saber?" Rider taunted, her voice dangerously sultry.

If she thought her words—or even her tone—would catch Saber off guard, she was wrong; he merely turned around with a cold glare and kicked off towards her, his sword raised. But before he could even reach striking distance, Rider rushed forward and delivered a roundhouse kick, sending Saber plunging down several floors. He regained his footing on the side of the building, Rider standing above him with her dagger shining wickedly in the moonlight.

"But don't you worry," the lavender-haired woman continued. "You'll be put out of your misery soon enough."

And the chase went on. In minutes, Saber had reached the roof, but before he could attack, he was met with a blinding white light. He watched as white feathers, followed by a magnificent white horse, emerged from the light, Rider sitting bareback upon her steed.

Saber could not help the hitch in his throat as the horse remained in midair. That creature was a Phantasmal Beast, the winged horse Pegasus, commonly thought to only be a myth. But the knight quickly shook off his wonderment at the horse's apparition as Rider charged forward. Saber swung his now glowing sword, a streak of light rushing towards his opponent, but the Pegasus easily dodged the attack.

Rider charged again, not giving Saber a chance to counterattack. The Pegasus proceeded to mow him down, and by the time he managed to get to his feet, wincing slightly, the horse had returned to the sky.

"Isn't this a surprise?" Rider called down from atop the Pegasus. "You're far more resilient than you look."

"Conjuring up a Phantasmal Beast is a profoundly sinful act, Rider," Saber shot back, hoping that if he could get her talking, it would give him time to think of how to defeat her even when she had Pegasus.

"I was an enemy to you humans my entire life," Rider said coolly. "Therefore, the only creatures I can control are the poor souls your people have driven into extinction."

Saber's eyes narrowed. "Now I see; I knew there was something unsettling about you. You're some kind of demon, are you not?"

Rider rose higher into the sky. "Think what you want. It doesn't change the fact that, as long as I'm up here, no one can lay a finger on me!"

She charged towards Saber, who dodged the stampeding Pegasus just in time. _There is nothing I can do but wait her out,_ the knight thought grimly. _If I could get her into a vulnerable position, then perhaps—_

"Saber!" The door to the roof burst open, revealing Shira standing there, breathing heavily from having to run up the last ten floors.

"Shira?" Saber turned to face his Master, temporarily forgetting about Rider. "What are you doing up here? I told you to—"

He was cut off by the sound of insane laughter.

"Matou," Shira hissed. She scanned the roof—she could see Saber standing with his sword at the ready and Rider sitting on a white, flying horse in midair, but not Shinji—and her voice rose. "Quit hiding and show yourself, you coward!"

"Don't you get it, Emiya?!" Shinji's voice seemed to come from everywhere, so Shira was unable to pinpoint his exact location. "This is the difference between our powers! You and that white knight of yours are history! But since I'm feeling merciful tonight, I promise to make your death as painless as possible. Go on, Rider; start with the Servant! I want you to rip him to pieces!"

With a cry that was more suited for a great bird rather than a horse, the Pegasus shot forward towards Saber.

Shira's stomach lurched. "Saber, get down!" she shrieked, running towards him.

Saber only spared Shira a tense glance before turning his attention back to the speeding horse coming his way. Without any second thoughts, he allowed his sword to be engulfed by light, powerful gusts of wind picking up as Invisible Air was slowly but surely beginning to release.

Rider merely chuckled in amusement. "I guess playtime is over, Saber," she crooned, gently patting the Pegasus' neck. "My Noble Phantasm is exceptional, so it tends to draw a bit of a crowd." Glowing, golden reins materialized in her hands. "Not that I have to worry about that up here."

"This is your Noble Phantasm?" Saber asked, eyeing the reins.

"It is," Rider confirmed. "Ordinarily, Pegasus is far too gentle-natured for the likes of battle." Her expression hardened. "If I didn't use something like this, he would never be inclined to fight!"

She lashed at her steed with her reins. " _Die, Saber_!" And with those words, the Pegasus flew higher and higher, streaking across the sky like a shooting star.

Saber's grip on his still glowing sword tightened. This was the moment he had been waiting for. "Hear me," he muttered, closing his eyes. The wind intensified into a wild tempest, the light grew even brighter, and the knight stood calmly as Rider's own glowing Pegasus sped towards him.

"BELLEROPHON!" Rider screamed.

Blue-green eyes stared up at her in defiance. "You know, Rider," Saber began, "I too find being up this high to be advantageous. Up here, I don't have to worry about scorching the earth with my blade!"

With that declaration, Invisible Air was fully released. For the very first time in this War, Saber's sword—his Noble Phantasm—was unveiled. Although it was surrounded by a golden light, the sword was easily recognizable. Any enemy would know it on sight.

And any enemy who knew the sword would immediately know the wielder's true identity.

"Behold!"

The sword was raised, its light becoming as bright as the sun itself.

"EXCALIBUR!"

The light burst forth towards the sky and engulfed the surroundings in its radiance. After a moment, all the light faded, the wind died, and Rider and her Pegasus were no more.

Shira, who had spent the last several minutes trying not to get blown away by the wind, could only stare at Saber as if she had never truly seen him before, completely robbed of speech. _That sword..._ she thought numbly, _he had called it Excalibur._

Excalibur, the Sword of Promised Victory, the finest blade in British history...and it was Saber's Noble Phantasm. That being the case, it meant that Saber's real name, something Shira had given little to no thought about, could only be—

A scream pierced the air.

"My Command Seals!" Shinji wailed from an area above where Shira and Saber were. "They're burning!" He dropped his book, which must have burst into flames the minute Rider had been killed.

"Matou!" Shira barked out.

Shinji cast his terrified gaze to her, as if only just realizing she was still there, then turned around and ran off, screaming all the while.

Shira was about to go after him when she heard a thud from behind her.

"Saber!" she gasped, forgetting all about Shinji upon seeing that her Servant had fallen. Both his armor and Excalibur slowly disappeared in a twinkling of light. When Shira hurried over, knelt down beside him, and turned him over to get a look at his face, she saw that he had fainted and broken into a sweat.

"Saber?" Shira repeated. She felt his forehead, but immediately jerked her hand back. He was burning up!

"Saber!" she exclaimed more insistently, shaking him. "Come on, Saber, wake up! Say something, _anything_! Don't do this, Saber; don't you dare do this!"

But no matter how many times Shira called Saber's name, no matter how panicky and desperate she sounded, he remained unconscious.


	13. Saber's Circumstances

_He was invincible._

_No matter what fight he got into, whether it was a minor skirmish or a great battle, he would always make it out unscathed. Time and time again, he led his troops into war and never tasted defeat. No enemy could wound him, or even lay a finger on him—any enemy that tried would be impaled by his sword._

_Rumor had it that he was a war god in the form of an ageless human boy, sent to the physical world to aid Britain in its time of need. He heard these rumors, but he paid them no mind. He also heard many of his men praise his extraordinary combat skills, and he modestly shrugged that off as well. Indeed, his skill with a blade was impressive, but arrogance would only hinder him in a fight._

_He stood in the midst of a large field, the dead, bleeding bodies of enemy Saxons strewed around him. The grisly sight of a warzone would be enough to nauseate or even traumatize an ordinary civilian, but he was well acquainted with bloodshed and did not so much as flinch._

_"Victory," he started, loud enough for his men to hear, "is ours!"_

_He raised his sword as the battlefield erupted in great, roaring cheers._

_Long live Camelot._

_Long live Britain._

_Long live King Arthur._

* * *

Shira slowly blinked awake to see the dining room's ceiling above her. She sat up with a sleepy grunt, rubbing her eyes. Saber hadn't regained consciousness in the entire time it had taken her to carry him home. Luckily, Rin had not gone to bed yet, and she took the blond to his room after about fifteen seconds of listening to Shira's panicked rambling.

The redhead quickly straightened up as Rin chose that moment to walk into the room. "How's Saber?" she asked at once, all lingering grogginess forgotten.

"Judging from his condition," Rin replied, sitting down at the table, "I doubt he's going to be waking up or getting better any time soon. Would you mind telling me what happened?"

A new wave of panic had seized Shira when Rin said Saber wasn't getting better, but she forced it down in order to answer the question. "Saber killed Rider. He used his Noble Phantasm to do it, and he collapsed after it was over."

"Hmm. He used his Noble Phantasm, huh?" Rin shook herself out of her musings, looking at Shira with a serious expression on her face. "All right, I'm gonna be nice and not grill you on the specifics of Saber's power. As it is, you have a much bigger problem to worry about right now."

"And what's that?" Shira asked.

"The thought should've at least crossed your mind," Rin said. "If you don't think of something soon, Saber is going to disappear."

 _That's what I was afraid of,_ Shira thought, her insides clenching.

Rin continued when Shira remained silent. "Saber's mana is nearly gone; he has hardly anything left. I have no idea what Noble Phantasm he used tonight, but whatever it is, it all but depleted the magical energy he has. Servants can't exist in this world without mana, so if Saber's runs out, he'll fade away."

"But," Shira tried, clinging to any shred of optimism she could find, "he's been in fights before and managed to come out okay. He told me he'd be able to recover his strength if he just slept."

"That's because he started this War with an inordinate amount of mana," Rin pointed out. "Keep this in perspective; it's not like he doesn't have any mana left. He should be able to create enough to maintain his physical form."

"Then he'll be okay, right? _Right_?" Shira repeated a little forcefully when Rin didn't respond right away.

"Yes, he'll be okay," Rin conceded, "but that's about it. You're not replenishing Saber's mana, so the next time there's a battle, he's going to have to fight in a very compromising condition. If he uses his Noble Phantasm, he'll disappear for sure."

"All right, fine; so all he has to do is not use it again." _Please tell me it's that simple;_ _please_ _tell me it's that simple..._

But Rin was quick to crush Shira's hopes. "No Servant can survive the Holy Grail War without their Noble Phantasm. There are only two ways a Servant can recover their mana: The first is to have their Master replenish it; the second involves forcing the Servant to get mana on their own."

Shira, who had been staring at her lap for the last few seconds, now snapped her gaze to Rin, her eyes blazing. "Do you mean what Rider tried to do?" she demanded. "Are you saying Saber should get his strength back by ripping the souls out of innocent people?" Furious, she pounded her fist on the table. "He'd never agree to do that!"

Rin nodded calmly. "Yeah, he probably wouldn't." She paused expectantly. "Well? Can you think of any other alternative in getting Saber the mana he needs?"

"No," Shira admitted, her anger cooling. "I'm not able to properly support Saber; if I was, his mana surely would've been replenished by now."

 _God, I'm the worst Master ever. The very basics of having a Servant, and I can't even do_ that _right!_

"Let's look at this another way." Rin's voice broke Shira out of her self-deprecation. "When you summoned Saber, a contract was formed between the two of you. No matter how weak it is, as long as the contract is still in effect, you may have a chance here."

The black-haired girl fell silent momentarily, then exhaled sharply. "Look, Shira, I'm not going to sugarcoat this. As ugly as it is, if you want to save Saber, you're going to have to use a Command Seal and force him to attack someone."

"You want me to kill people." It wasn't a question. Shira looked down at the two remaining Command Seals on her hand, feeling sick.

"It's the only way to avoid the worst case scenario," Rin insisted. "You'll have to do it fast, before you're attacked by another Servant."

Shira wanted to protest. She wanted to tell Rin that she couldn't bring herself to kill an innocent person, even if it ensured Saber's continued survival. She wanted to say that she would find a way to replenish Saber's mana without resorting to murder.

But her voice seemed to have deserted her, and it wasn't long before Rin left the dining room, officially ending the conversation.

* * *

 _Well, Saber, it looks like we're in serious trouble,_ Shira thought as she sat by her Servant's futon, watching him sleep. His expression was calm enough, but a small frown marred his features. Was the lack of sufficient mana causing him pain?

Somehow, that wouldn't be surprising.

Shira mentally played and replayed what Rin had told her. Clearly, her only options were either letting Saber die or making Saber attack innocent people by using a Command Seal. Neither option was desirable.

 _I wouldn't want Saber to die even if this War wasn't going on. But...killing people? Saber would never forgive me if I made him do that—heck,_ I _would never forgive me._

Shira let out a sigh. Was compromising both their ideals—both their _morals_ —the only way to save Saber?

She didn't know how long she stayed there, looking over the knight as he slept, not tearing her eyes away from him for fear he'd be gone the next time she looked. Eventually, though, she finally succumbed to sleep.

* * *

_He had been born and raised in a time of war and chaos. The Saxons were invading and pillaging the kingdom, hoping to overthrow the British royal family. When Arthur, the son of King Uther Pendragon, was born, he was smuggled out of the castle and sent to live with a poor but loyal knight to ensure his safety._

_For the first fifteen years of his life, Arthur lived in a humble village with his foster family, training from an early age to become a knight. He had never been told of the sorcerer Merlin's prophecy stating he would become Britain's greatest King and his country's savior—there was no need to, for Arthur had long sworn to bear a sword in the desire to save the dying kingdom._

_Shortly after Uther's death, the day of appointing the next king arrived. Lords and knights from all over Britain gathered at the place of selection in Camelot, believing that the new king would be determined through a jousting tournament._

_But all that was there was a sword stuck in a stone, along with the hooded figure of Merlin._

_"Whosoever pulleth this sword from this stone shall be the rightful King of all Britain," the sorcerer intoned in a deep, booming voice._

_Many knights eagerly attempted to pull the fine blade from its stone, but it was all in vain; the sword did not budge. Considering pulling out the sword to be a waste of time, the knights decided to joust for the kingship._

_Since Arthur was the newly appointed squire of his foster brother, he was not permitted to compete. As such, none of the knights took any notice as he lingered by the sword, staring at it thoughtfully. After a few minutes of contemplation, he walked closer to the sword and reached out to grab it._

_"Before you attempt this, Arthur," Merlin cautioned, "I want you to give great thought in regards to what you will be committing to. Once you take Caliburn in hand, you will no longer be free to live as a human."_

_"I know." The boy, still not even a fully grown adult, said this so calmly, so simply, one could be forgiven for assuming he had no fears about what being a king meant._

_But to say Arthur was without fear would be a lie. All his life, he had been told that a king was not allowed to be human, that a king must sacrifice of himself for the good of his country. A king must think of the needs of his subjects long before giving a single thought to his own wants or happiness. A king must rule with his head, never with his heart._

_It was a daunting task. Was Arthur willing to live as a king, as an ideal, rather than the boy he was? If he were truly honest with himself, he would admit to not wanting to bear the burden of being a monarch. He didn't even feel worthy of such a responsibility._

_But this wasn't about his desires. This was about his duty._

_"I have come here to free this sword of my own volition."_

_If he could protect the people, if he could save Britain, then any sacrifices he made would be well worth it._

_He took hold of Caliburn's hilt, slowly and easily pulling the sword out of the stone. Caliburn was raised into the air, shining brilliantly in the sun's light, its new wielder looking on with a solemn gaze._

_The reign of Arthur Pendragon, King of Knights, had begun._

* * *

The next time Shira woke up, sunlight was pouring into the window of Saber's room, temporarily blinding her.

 _What a strange dream,_ she thought vaguely, blinking rapidly until her eyes had adjusted to the morning's brightness. Saber had been in her dream, but she had never seen the events depicted in it before in her life. Was it even possible for someone to dream of something they had no knowledge of?

 _And that wasn't even the first time._ Shira suddenly remembered the dream she'd had while dozing off last night. Saber had been fighting in some major battle, as strong and relentless as ever. Maybe these Saber-specific dreams were just her mind's way of coping with the fact that the knight was currently in danger of dying?

Of course, that didn't explain why the sword in the dreams wasn't the same sword Saber used during his final confrontation with Rider (even if the two were very similar in design: white blade with a blue and gold hilt), but she decided to chalk it up to her subconscious being weird.

Shira let her gaze wander to Saber. The morning light might have granted him an ethereal look if not for the small, tense grimace on his face. His head unconsciously turned to face the redhead, and he made a noise of obvious discomfort.

She crawled over to Saber's side, wiping his sweaty brow with a rag that had been beside his pillow.

"Just try to sleep some more, okay, Saber?" Shira said softly, trying to smile encouragingly despite the fact that he wasn't awake to see it. "You're gonna be all right; you'll get your strength back soon, I promise."

Even now, Shira so desperately wanted to believe that all Saber needed was rest in order to regain his mana. That way, there would be no need for him to kill anyone. If he just slept, he would get better; she'd be there when he woke up and chide him for scaring her half to death and willingly accept the apology he'd give and...and...

 _Uh-huh, sure,_ a mental voice said nastily, _and maybe there really is a race of tap-dancing rhinos living on the moon._

* * *

The twang of bowstrings caught Shira's attention shortly after she finally left Saber's room and went into the hallway. Since she didn't really feel up to making breakfast at the moment, she decided to see where the noise was coming from.

She headed outside and was rather unsurprised to see Archer standing in the middle of the yard, apparently in the middle of archery practice—without using any arrows. From what Shira could see, the older woman was only pulling at the strings of a bow.

Archer's mouth pulled into a frown once she noticed the redhead standing on the porch. "What do you want, girl?" she asked irritably, lowering her bow. "I won't answer questions, even about archery."

"Whatever." Shira scowled. "I'm not interested in your stupid bow; I just wanted to see what you were up to."

"I'm checking the perimeter," Archer answered, her voice cool. "The injuries I received from Saber have finally healed. I expect that means this alliance will be ending sooner or later."

Shira pursed her lips and looked away. She was bursting to say that her alliance with Rin wouldn't end just because Archer happened to make a full recovery, but she had no doubt that the red-clad woman would simply dismiss her words. What was much more troubling was the reminder that, one way or another, her and Rin's partnership _would_ end; as aggravating as the older girl could be, Shira found that she didn't want to see her as an enemy.

"Rin told me what happened to Saber," Archer continued, rudely interrupting Shira's train of thought. "A Servant with a Master who can't replenish their mana has no chance of surviving. He knew this from the beginning."

"Shut up!" Shira glared. "I'm not letting Saber disappear!"

Archer continued to regard her coolly. "Must I spell it out for you? Saber knew that if he used his Noble Phantasm, he would disappear. He probably intended to never unleash it, so there's only one reason why he would do such a thing despite knowing the outcome: Saber chose to protect you rather than protect himself."

"You sure know a lot about Saber's motives, considering you weren't even there when he used his Noble Phantasm," Shira remarked, suspicious.

The white-haired woman paused, although her expression remained unchanged. "As I said, I heard it from Rin."

Having nothing to say to that, Shira decided it was best if she walked away.

* * *

It wasn't long before Shira found herself walking to the park. Just moping around the estate didn't sound very appealing to her, and she figured the fresh, cold air would do her some good. Maybe she'd be able to come up with a solution to Saber's problem.

But after several minutes of sitting on the park's bench, the only two things Shira had to show for it were goose bumps on her arms and no ideas. No matter how she looked at it, no matter how many times she turned over the situation in her head, she could think of no other way to replenish Saber's mana. If what Rin told her was true—and there was no reason for it to be false—the _only_ way for Saber to recover was to force him to drain someone's mana.

The only problem with that plan was the fact that attacking an innocent bystander was wrong, regardless of how good Shira's intentions were. The ends simply did not justify the means. On the other hand, if she did nothing, Saber would disappear, and that was something she couldn't allow to happen.

 _Damned if I do, damned if I don't,_ Shira thought, running a hand through her hair in frustration.

"I didn't expect you to be here."

Shira looked up at the familiar, childlike voice.

"Oh, Ilya," she greeted, though it was without much enthusiasm.

"Good to see you, Shira." The little girl smiled, walking closer. "Is something wrong? You seem upset."

"Did you come here by yourself again?" Shira mentally shook herself, looking away. _I don't have time for this._ "Wait, don't answer that. I'm sorry, Ilya, but I can't play with you today."

"Saber's about to fade away, isn't he?"

Shira took note of the slight maliciousness in Ilya's voice as her gaze snapped back to her. Was she now dealing with Ilya the Master, not Ilya the innocent girl?

But as quick as a wink, Ilya reverted back to her sweet tone. "Shira, the reason Rider's Master got away is because you're always so nice." She giggled. "When you beat somebody, you just gotta kill them and be done with it."

"Hey, don't say stuff like—wait a minute," Shira interrupted herself, her brain registering exactly what Ilya had said, "were you up on that building last night, too?"

"Yep," Ilya answered cheerfully, "but I was inside the building, watching from the sidelines."

Shira abruptly gasped as she saw Ilya's red eyes glow. Less than a second later, the muscles in her body stiffened of their own accord; when she tried to move, she found that she couldn't.

"I-Ilya..." the redhead stammered, "w-what are you...?"

"Wow, you're already paralyzed?" Ilya asked, amused. "I didn't think I'd be able to catch you _this_ easily. You don't have any defenses at all, Shira."

 _No...move...move, damn it!_ But no matter how much Shira tried to move her arms and legs, her body wouldn't budge. In fact, the more she tried to resist whatever spell Ilya was performing—Mystic Eyes, she thought it was called—the more paralyzed her body seemed to become.

"Don't move; it's only a waste of time," Ilya said. "Pretty soon, you won't be able to talk, either."

By now, Shira was almost completely numb. Her eyes grew heavy, and Ilya's voice was becoming less clear.

"But that's fine by me; I don't feel like talking, anyway."

"Are you...going to kill me?" Shira managed to force out.

"Saber's going to be gone soon, so let's just get this over with. Nighty night, Shira."

The last thing Shira saw before blacking out was the sight of Ilya's red eyes shining triumphantly.

* * *

_In the darkness surrounding her, all she could see was a sword. It was the same sword she had spent a month dreaming about, the same sword that her Servant held in her two most recent dreams. The white blade contained a hint of shining gold, with letters of a language she didn't know decorated along the blade's length; gold also intertwined with the blue color of the hilt, and she could just make out a tiny red jewel near the pommel._

_The sword was so beautiful. It was meant solely for the King of Knights, but she still wished to hold it if she could. Unfortunately, such a thing could only be possible in her dreams; the least she could do was imagine what it would feel like to actually wield that sword._

_Yes...she could imagine it, couldn't she? But magic like reinforcement and structural grasping would be of no use. How could she strengthen or perceive something that didn't truly exist? She would have to use a more complicated magecraft. There was a name for it, but...she couldn't remember...What was it...?_

* * *

When Shira finally came to (the numbness in her body was still present, but not nearly as overwhelming as before), she found herself sitting in a chair in an unfamiliar place. The walls were carved with intricate designs, and the plush carpet looked soft enough for one to sink their toes into. There was a neatly made four-poster bed with a golden bedspread and a matching canopy sitting to the right, and to the left was a fireplace that was both decorative and functional.

In short, the room wasn't just fancy enough to belong in a mansion or an estate—it was fancy enough to belong in a castle.

 _How'd I get here?_ Shira thought quizzically. The last thing she remembered was going to the park, then she'd encountered Ilya—

 _Ilya! That's right!_ It was starting to come back; Ilya had paralyzed her, so she must have brought her here, too...wherever "here" was. The sunlight streaming in from the window was an orange color, so she'd been here for a few hours at the very least.

Shira tried to get up, but something stopped her from getting very far. When she tried turning her head to look behind her, she could see out of the corner of her eye that her hands were bound by rope; looking down at the carpet confirmed that rope was also binding her feet.

Despite the fact that her body wasn't entirely back to normal, Shira started to squirm against the ropes. She had to get out of here, and _fast_ ; she had to get back home, back to Saber, before he could—

The door opened at that moment, and Shira ceased struggling as Ilya stepped into the room.

"So," Ilya chirped, "you finally decided to wake up." She closed the door and walked over to Shira. "How are you feeling? You should be able to talk again by now."

"Oh, I'm feeling just _peachy_ ," Shira said sarcastically. "I'm lucid enough to realize that you've gone and made me your prisoner."

Ilya's eyes narrowed. "What are you so mad about? Captured enemies are supposed to be thrown in the dungeon, but I decided to make an exception for you and put you in my room instead." She smiled as if that would make the situation okay.

 _Her room? So I'm in that big house she told me about._ "Why did you even bring me here?" Shira demanded. "If you're going to kill me, you could've easily done that at the park."

"What are you talking about?" Ilya seemed genuinely confused. "I don't want to kill you, Shira. Sure, I'm gonna kill the other Masters, but you're special." She beamed expectantly. "So why not join me and become my Servant?"

All Shira could do was gape at Ilya, marveling at the absurdity of her suggestion. "What the _hell_ , Ilya?!" she exclaimed once she'd found her voice, not caring that she'd just cursed in front of a little girl.

"All you'd have to do is protect me," Ilya said, completely unfazed by the expletive, "and I won't ever have to kill you. What do you say?"

"Come on; you know that's crazy," Shira protested.

But Ilya just shook her head. "No, it's not. Once Saber's gone, there's no way you can win a fight. And if you can't win, why should you be a Master?"

Shira grunted. _Why does everyone keep saying Saber's going to disappear like it's a concrete fact?!_ "You're wrong, Ilya. Saber's not going anywhere."

A hint of a smirk crossed Ilya's lips. "Even if he doesn't fade away, he'll easily be killed in the shape he's in. You're better off staying here."

"You can keep asking all you want; I'm not—!" Shira began heatedly.

Ilya raised her hand to silence the redhead. "Don't you get it, Shira? You're nothing more than a bird in a cage, and I'm the one who decides whether you live or die. Besides," she tittered, the innocent sound at odds with her cool tone, "I've been waiting ten years for this. It wouldn't be very fun if I just killed you right now. I'll ask you once more time: Be my Servant."

The real question could be seen glittering in Ilya's eyes: Did Shira want to live or die?

There was only one answer to give.

"I'm sorry, Ilya," Shira said, "but I'm not teaming up with you. I have Saber as my Servant, and as long as he's still around, I'm going to keep being a Master."

Shira watched as a crestfallen expression appeared on Ilya's face. For a few seconds, she wondered if the little girl might cry, but Ilya's red eyes soon filled with frigid resentment.

"I see. So you're going to betray me, too." Her voice had become just as cold as her eyes. As she continued speaking, she stepped over to the door. "I've been turning a blind eye to you lately, but not anymore."

"What are you going to do, Ilya?" Shira questioned, ill at ease.

Ilya turned to face her with a cruel little smile. "I'm going to kill Saber and Rin. You won't like that, right?"

Ice flooded Shira's veins. "No, Ilya! Leave them out of this!"

"Leave them out of this?" Ilya repeated, amused. "You should've thought of that before turning me down. I'll kill Rin and Saber, then I'll come back to kill you."

"If you want to hate me, fine," Shira said, "but there's no reason for you to kill Saber and Tohsaka!"

"Shira, I can't go around letting the other participants live. This is the Holy Grail War, remember?"

"Damn it, Ilya!" Shira burst out. "Don't talk about killing people like it's nothing!" _What kind of messed-up childhood does this girl have?!_

"But it's not that big of a deal," Ilya said dismissively. "In case you didn't already know this, I've already killed one Master."

Shira's stomach churned. "You did?"

"Yep. It was last night."

 _Matou,_ the redhead realized suddenly. _If Ilya was in the building last night, then that means—_

"It was kind of unexpected," Ilya continued casually. "I didn't plan it or anything. I thought for sure that you were going to kill him, but when you didn't..."

Her voice trailed off, but Shira didn't have to hear the rest of the sentence. So Shinji was dead then, doubtlessly slaughtered by Berserker. Getting killed by a Servant as brutal as Ilya's would surely be anything but painless. It wasn't too surprising when Shira felt a twinge of pity; yes, she hadn't liked Shinji, and the world was probably better off without someone like him, but that was no reason to want him dead.

"I hope you're not upset." Ilya's voice broke Shira out of her thoughts. "I only killed him because you didn't. To be honest, I feel bad whenever I steal prey from someone else." She giggled as though it were a joke. "I'll be back soon. Try to escape if you want, but it'll just be a waste of time."

And with that, Ilya walked out of the room and closed the door behind her, ignoring Shira's angry demands to come back.

Once she was alone, Shira struggled against the ropes with renewed vigor, but it was only after about half a minute that she was forced to stop. Her body was no longer numb, but her limbs felt like lead. _Damn it. Ilya's Mystic Eyes must've really done a number on me._

Okay; obviously, the mana Ilya had used to paralyze Shira was still in her system. Therefore, if she could remove the foreign mana, she'd be able to move to her satisfaction again.

Shira took a quick breath, closing her eyes. "Trace, on."

Her magic circuits flipped on.

"Basic structure, established."

Mana—her own mana—began flowing at once.

"Components, determined."

Her mana's speed increased, determined to flush out Ilya's mana from her body. She started trembling; the mana was going faster and faster; she tried to control it—

Shira let out a small cry as she suddenly lurched forward in her chair, coughing up some blood. _All right..._ she thought shakily, _I think I can move again, at least...Don't worry, Saber, I'm coming! Just keep yourself alive, you hear me?_

And even though she doubted Saber could hear her, she wanted to believe he had anyway.


	14. Escaping From Einzbern Castle

It took a few minutes, but Shira was able to free her hands from the ropes binding her. She rubbed her wrists to get her blood circulation back, then quickly untied the ropes from her feet. Once that was done, she got up from her chair and strode to the door, opening it a crack and thanking God that Ilya hadn't thought to lock her in the room.

Shira peered into the hallway, quickly shutting the door once she heard footsteps. _Great,_ she thought. _Ilya was dumb enough not to lock me in just in case I_ did _manage to get out of the ropes, but smart enough to have a guard keep watch._ She took a step backward and grabbed a poker from the fireplace, then turned around with her back against the door, readying her makeshift weapon.

Just then, the door burst open.

"Don't move!"

And the person standing in the doorframe—blond hair, blue-green eyes, and clad in white and blue—was none other than Saber.

"Shira?" His hostile expression gave way to confusion when he saw the girl holding a poker over her head.

"Saber! What are you doing here?" Shira lowered the poker, taking a moment to look over her Servant. His face was lightly flushed and a bit sweaty, but he seemed okay, all things considered.

"I could ask you the same thing," Saber replied.

"So," Rin spoke as she walked up to Shira and Saber, Archer following behind her, "you look to be in good shape. I guess you didn't need our help after all."

"That's what I said from the beginning," Archer said before Shira could formulate a response. "We were better off just leaving you to your fate."

"And just why are _you_ here?" Shira questioned a little testily, shooting a small glare at the older woman.

"I asked for Rin and Archer's assistance," Saber explained. "I realized that Ilyasviel must have abducted you when I could not sense your presence at the estate."

"We don't have time for explanations," Rin butted in impatiently. "Let's just get out of here before Ilyasviel gets back."

And with that, the two Master-Servant pairs proceeded to run down the long hallway. Various paintings were hung on the walls, but Shira didn't stop for a closer inspection; Rin was right—the sooner they escaped Ilya's hideout, the better.

 _Gotta escape, gotta escape, gotta escape,_ Shira chanted in her head; it was the only thing that kept her from listening too much to Saber's worryingly labored breathing, which sounded further and further away the more she ran—

Shira came to a halt just as she, Rin, and Archer made it around a corner, turning to see Saber several feet behind, having sunk to his knees and currently wheezing.

At once, Shira hurried over to him, calling his name.

"It's fine...I'm fine..." Saber mumbled weakly.

"No, you're not," Shira contradicted. "You came all this way without being fully recovered?"

"A Servant's duty is to protect their Master." Saber looked up; to Shira's alarm, his face was redder than it had been only minutes ago. "I admit that my strength leaves something to be desired, but I can still provide adequate cover for you."

"Saber, you can't even run a quarter of a mile without having to stop," Shira protested, bending down and offering her hand to him. "Lean on me for now."

Saber dropped his gaze to the floor. "That will not be necessary."

"Just do it, Saber!" the redhead snapped, not in the mood for his stubbornness.

"Leave him be," Archer's voice cut in.

Shira straightened up to face her. "I'm not abandoning him!"

"There's nothing you can do for him." Archer's gray eyes were trained on Saber. "Whatever you do—whatever you say—you cannot save him."

"That's not true!" Shira insisted.

Archer didn't respond, still looking at Saber. Although her mouth was set into a grim line, Shira saw that her eyes seemed to be telling a different story. They weren't filled with malice, disdain, or even annoyance. Was that...sadness Shira was seeing?

 _And what does she mean, "whatever I say"?_ Somehow, it didn't sound like Archer was talking about Saber's current condition at all.

But Archer's eyes hardened the instant her gaze flickered to Shira; whatever emotion that had been there before disappeared. The woman turned around and hurried to catch up with Rin just as Saber managed to get back on his feet. In no time at all, the foursome had reached a long staircase leading to an elegant lobby—and a set of double doors.

"There's our exit," Rin announced. "It looks like we made it just in time."

Shira frowned skeptically. "This seems too easy. If this is the main entrance, wouldn't it be the first place they'd expect us to escape from?"

"Ilyasviel isn't here," Rin pointed out, "so our best option is to take the shortest route out of this place. So let's go already!"

She began to run down the stairs, and Archer, Saber, and Shira (the latter of whom unable to come up with any other argument) followed suit. They made it downstairs and about halfway through the lobby, the doors getting closer and closer with every step, when a young, silvery voice stopped them in their tracks.

"Oh? All of you are leaving so soon?"

Shira felt her body tense as she turned to where the voice was coming from. Sure enough, Ilya was standing at the top of the stairs.

"Ilyasviel..." Rin's voice shook.

The little girl smiled wickedly down at her. "This saves me the trouble of finding you, Rin. Thank you."

No one said anything. Shira didn't know about anyone else, but she was too busy wondering how they could escape now without being forced to deal with Berserker (if his Master was here, then he was doubtlessly not too far behind) to come up with any witty retort for Ilya.

"Something wrong?" The silence seemed to amuse Ilya. "Come on, guys; I'm giving you a lot of time to come up with some last words here. It's more fun for me if I at least hear you say something before I kill you."

"Fine then." A haughty smirk crossed Rin's face. "Let me ask you this."

"Tohsaka—" Shira began.

But Rin continued before she could get any further. "Ilyasviel, why couldn't I sense your return? Was it because you were hiding here the whole time?"

"That's right." Ilya's smirk matched Rin's in superiority. "I didn't actually go anywhere; I was just having fun watching you run around the place like a bunch of idiots."

"So the person you sent out your front door was a fake," Rin concluded.

"Yep. After all, I'm the mistress of the house. It's my job to attend to my guests' needs— _and_ to keep them entertained."

As if on cue, Berserker suddenly appeared, dropping to the floor with a growl and sending dust flying. He straightened up and fixed his enemies with a glare, snarling lowly all the while.

"Anyone else have something they want to say?" Ilya asked mockingly.

Again, no one answered.

"Okay, then; let's get started." Ilya raised her hand. "You have my word: I won't let anyone escape."

Shira gritted her teeth. _If we don't come up with a plan in the next three seconds, we're screwed._

"Shira, I want you out of here; I can handle this." Saber's authoritative air was ruined by the sharp exhale that followed.

"I'm _not_ leaving you to be killed," Shira informed him, eyeing the beads of sweat on his face.

"But you will be killed as well if you stay."

"Listen, Archer," Rin spoke, turning to address her Servant. "It doesn't have to be for long, but I want you to slow him down a bit."

" _What_?" Shira exclaimed, tearing her gaze away from Saber to look at Rin in shock. _Is she ordering her to die?_

"Rin, what are you suggesting?" Saber questioned. "Archer cannot defeat Berserker by herself!"

Rin ignored them both. "Just keep him busy and we'll escape."

Shira stared at Archer, wondering how the white-haired Servant would react to what Rin was telling her to do.

"That is the wisest course of action." Archer's voice was calm. "If you can escape first, Rin, then I should be able to follow." She smirked slightly. "After all, independent operations like this happen to be a specialty of my class."

Archer stepped forward towards Berserker, who remained motionless.

Ilya giggled from the top of the staircase. "I don't believe it. You expect that no-name Servant to stand a chance against my Hercules? You're so much funnier than I thought, Rin!"

"Oh, by the way, Rin," Archer said, still impassive, "if all you want is for me to buy you time, I can do that. However..." she paused, turning her head slightly toward her Master, "would you mind very much if I destroyed the brute while I was at it?"

Rin stared at the older woman incomprehensively. Frankly, Shira couldn't blame her. Even just fighting Berserker to give them time to escape would surely end in Archer's death; did the woman mean to say that she was going to take her opponent with her?

"Fine," Rin said at last. "Go ahead, Archer. If you think you can take him, take him."

Archer turned her gaze back to Berserker. "Excellent."

Ilya scoffed. "Tear her limb from limb, Berserker! I want that stuck-up woman dead!"

Berserker roared in response, his body glowing with mana.

"Now's our chance!" Rin turned and took off running. Saber followed after her, and Shira was about to do the same when Archer's voice stopped her.

"Shira Emiya. You're not a person who fights; you're a person who creates." Archer had her back towards the redhead, staring unflinchingly at Berserker. "Clear everything else from your mind. You only have one skill, so it is imperative that you master it."

Before Shira's very eyes, two broadswords—one black, one white; the same swords she had seen during Archer's fights with Lancer and Saber—materialized in the red-clad Servant's hands.

Archer lifted the swords above her head in a crisscross motion. "Never forget that you should always be visualizing yourself at your most powerful. You don't need any external enemies—the only enemy you have to defeat is your own self-image."

She threw the white sword up, and the blade stuck into the ceiling, causing part of it to crack and break apart.

"Come on, Shira!" Rin yelled over the noise of falling debris.

And without another thought, Shira ran away, following after Rin and Saber and leaving Archer to fight Berserker.

* * *

Archer was not an optimistic woman.

It was no surprise; countless years of being a Counter Guardian, of being sent to the physical world only to slaughter people before they could slaughter more people, destroyed the optimism and idealism she'd had during her human life. That being the case, she knew perfectly well fighting Berserker was suicide long, long before the situation had presented itself.

But try as she may, her heart was not entirely made of stone. As cynical, dismissive, and bitter as she was, there still remained a tiny spark of the Shira Emiya Archer used to be. And Shira Emiya would have been completely willing to give up her life for total strangers, let alone her loved ones, if it meant they could escape an enemy unharmed.

Archer was not able to kill her past self, so she would have to make do with fulfilling Rin's final order.

She just barely managed to jump away as Berserker swung his sword in her direction. Berserker lumbered forward to strike again and again, but Archer dodged the blows and jumped in the air, black Kanshou and white Bayuka poised to attack. With a roar, Berserker met Archer head-on, striking her and knocking both swords from her grasp.

The white-haired woman landed on her feet, ignoring the sharp pain of the shoulder wound inflicted on her.

"That's it, Berserker!" Ilya called. "Hurry up and finish her!"

Wordlessly, Archer turned to face her opponent, another copy of Kanshou and Bayuka materializing in her hands within seconds. Berserker's sword swung at her, and she dodged every strike, the ferocity of the giant's attacks forcing her back. He lunged towards her, and she raised her weapons in time to block the sword intending to rip her in two, gritting her teeth with the effort. It wasn't long before the force of Berserker's blow sent her flying and she was embedded into the wall with a great crash, Kanshou and Bayuka breaking and fading away in the process.

"Those things are weak; they broke as soon as you called them," Ilya taunted as a groaning Archer slumped out of the wall. "Did you really think a Noble Phantasm like that could beat Berserker?"

If Archer had been the type, she might have laughed; as it was, her lips were quivering upward despite herself. _I had forgotten exactly how tough this monster was. Very well; I suppose I need to use something more...appropriate._

She lifted her head and jumped up and backward to stand on the railing of the second floor. Snarling, Berserker prepared to jump after her.

" _I am the flesh and bone of my own sword._ " A spiral-bladed sword—Caladbolg, originally wielded by Fergus mac Róich—appeared in Archer's hand, shortly followed by a bow in the other. Caladbolg glowed and changed into an arrow; Archer nocked the still glowing arrow and aimed it at Berserker, who was leaping towards her.

She fired, and the arrow hit its target in a burst of light. Berserker fell back to the ground with a pained roar, the light shooting upward to rip a hole in the ceiling.

When the light faded, Berserker was bent forward and breathing heavily, but still very much alive.

Archer was not surprised. _I was only able to take one—perhaps two—of his lives._ She leapt from one floor to the next, distantly hearing Ilya shriek at Berserker. In seconds, she had made it outside and stood on the balcony's railing. Archer sensed Berserker's presence behind her before she heard his growl, and she jumped away as he tried to slice her up. With a nimbleness one could never have expected from such a hulking man, Berserker swung himself over the railing and charged forward, striking downward.

But Archer jumped backward again, and Berserker only succeeded in getting himself caught in the now larger hole.

She crossed her arms in front of her. " _Steel flows through my body, and fire is what courses through my blood._ " Kanshou and Bayuka materialized in her hands and she threw them into the air like boomerangs.

" _I have created over a thousand blades._ " A second copy of Kanshou and Bayuka appeared, and Archer threw those, too. The four broadswords spun in the air and burst into flame the instant they surrounded Berserker, causing him to roar.

Archer ran towards her opponent. " _Unknown to death._ " Again, Kanshou and Bayuka materialized, and she held them behind her back, giving herself the appearance of a winged human. " _Nor known to life._ " The swords glowed, the blades becoming larger, and Archer leapt up above Berserker. With a battle cry, she came back down, both swords vertically slashing at the giant.

She quickly jumped out of the way as a small explosion occurred exactly where she had attacked Berserker. He was roaring, clearly wounded, still surrounded by fire, and bits of his skin were smoking...but Berserker still drew breath.

A slight smirk played on Archer's lips. "Tell me, Berserker, just how many more times must I kill you before you die?"

Berserker's response was to charge forward out of the flames, swinging his sword at Archer with an angry snarl. The force of his blow sent Archer crashing into the brick wall. She got up, still smirking, and the next downward strike Berserker dealt was enough for Archer to fall through the balcony towards the lobby below.

For some unknown reason, a memory surfaced in Archer's mind.

_She stared at Rin with a condescendingly amused air. "Just my luck. I've been drawn forth by a peculiar little Master."_

_Rin proceeded to use a Command Seal to force her to clean up the mess that had resulted from the summoning, but Archer decided that her little payback had been worth it._

Archer landed bodily on the lobby's floor, beaten and battered.

"So, do you still think it was wise to take on this fight?" Ilya's voice grew closer as she stepped over to the older woman's prone form.

There was no answer as Archer found herself in another flashback.

_She could have sworn her heart stopped._

_It...it was Saber. He was charging forward, his invisible sword was raised to attack her, and he was supposed to be her enemy...but all she did was lift Kanshou and Bayuka purely on instinct, unable—or perhaps unwilling—to do more._

_She was only half aware of the wound he had given her. As she sank to her knees and gasped for air, she let herself steal a few seconds to behold Saber after so long. His blue-green eyes were stoic, his pale face was hard, and his silver armor gleamed coldly in the moonlight._

_In those few seconds, she was not EMIYA, a Counter Guardian and a Servant of the Archer class; she was just Shira Emiya, back inside that storage shed, where an impossibly handsome knight had left her spellbound._

"Heh." The small smile on Archer's face was bittersweet as she opened her eyes. _Look what you do to me, Saber, even after all this time. You make me_ sentimental _._

"She's alive? There's no way—!" Ilya's voice rose. "Berserker! Stop playing around with her! There's something funny about this woman! I want you to kill her before she kills you! Be done with her already!"

Berserker growled in response, jumping back down into the lobby.

Archer struggled to her feet. "You never did have any mercy, did you, Ilya?" _Another person I couldn't save..._

"'Ilya'?" the girl repeated in confusion.

The smile became a smirk as Archer lifted her head to her opponent, ignoring Ilya. "My defeat may be inevitable, but you'll still have to work for it, Berserker. Go easy on me if you wish, but in the meantime..." Kanshou appeared in her hand, "I'm going to take two more of your lives!"

With that declaration, Archer threw Kanshou in the air; a few seconds later, the sound of glass shattering pierced the air. Aside from the moon shining from the hole in the ceiling, the room was plunged into darkness.

" _Many times I have withstood enormous pain to create thousands of weapons,_ " Archer intoned, her eyes shut.

"Stop her, Berserker!" Ilya cried.

But Archer continued, even as Berserker advanced towards her.

" _And yet those hands that have braved so much will never hold anything._ "

Berserker brandished his sword.

" _So, as I pray now, I call forth Unlimited Blade Works._ "

Archer's eyes snapped open, and a ring of fire suddenly surrounded her and engulfed both Berserker and Ilya.

When the fire burned out, the world had changed. Instead of the dark blue of nighttime, the fog-filled sky was a dark, rusty red, huge black gears gyrating in the distance. In the lobby's place was a flat, rocky plain, and on that plain...

...Was a countless supply of swords, blades, and various other weapons.

"A...Reality Marble?!" Ilya squeaked out.

Kanshou, Bayuka, Caladbolg, Durandal, Hrunting, Rho Aias, Gae Bolg, Gram...all of these and more, whether Noble Phantasms or nameless tools for battle, were weapons Archer had seen and magically stored in Unlimited Blade Works—the physical manifestation of her soul, her Noble Phantasm of sorts—during her life. Now that her Reality Marble was activated, she had every weapon she could ever need at her disposal.

Berserker glared down at Archer, who smirked as she picked up the nearest blade.

"Welcome to my world, the Pinnacle of Weaponry." She took a battle stance. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

A loud roar was her answer as Berserker charged forward, his sword raised. Archer ran towards him for what would prove to be their final clash.

* * *

The cries of a large flock of crows disrupted the quiet of the forest.

Shira had little idea about how long she, Saber, and Rin had been running; it must have been at least ten minutes since they'd left Archer behind, but she couldn't be sure. Every now and then, loud crashes and explosions could be heard, but none of them dared to go back, the need to put as much distance between themselves and Ilya and Berserker their top priority.

At present, though, Rin abruptly stopped running with a slight gasp. Saber and Shira also stopped, the latter letting the former take his arm off from around her shoulders (she had been supporting him to make sure he didn't fall behind).

"Tohsaka?" Shira asked hesitantly as she stepped closer to Rin. "Is Archer...?"

Rin stayed silent, looking at her left hand. In less than a second, the last Command Seal had faded, which could only mean one thing.

Archer was dead.

Shira gazed at Rin; the older girl's back was turned and she seemed to have gone rigid. When she spoke, her voice was blank, but quite steady.

"We've got to hurry."

 _She's shutting herself down,_ Shira realized. _It's like when we were talking about her father; she doesn't want to show that her Servant's death has any affect on her._

"Tohsaka, look—"

"I said hurry!" Rin snapped, her fist clenching. "If you go and get yourself killed by those two, I'll bring you back to life just to kill you a second time!"

Shira paused, not knowing what to say, or even if she should say anything. But after a few seconds, the sound of a thud caught her attention. She turned around to see that Saber had collapsed into a heap on the forest path.

"Saber!"

Just like that, all thoughts of how to console Rin were forgotten as Shira hurried over to her own Servant.


	15. Inside the Ruins

Shira got Saber into a sitting position, the latter breathing hard and sweating profusely.

"You're pushing yourself too far," the redhead scolded.

"What are you talking about?!" Saber demanded, his head shooting up as his face reddened; whether due to his weakening condition or his current anger, Shira didn't know. "I have been in much worse situations than this!" He shook off Shira's hand from his shoulder.

"Hey, no matter how many times you've experienced it, pain is still pain." Shira stood, picked Saber up (she fought back her concern about how light he'd gotten—had the mana depletion taken such a toll on his body that he was losing weight, or was he now on the verge of disappearing?), and slung him across her back, stooping a little as she did. "You know, your life would be so much easier if you'd just complain once in a while."

"Shira!" Saber exclaimed. "What are you doing?"

"What's it look like? I'm forcing you to take a break," Shira informed him tersely. "Watching you run like that is causing _me_ pain."

"Let go of me!" Saber began struggling against Shira's grasp. He'd fought in _wars_ and come out without a scratch, damn it! And now he was reduced to being _carried_ on the back of his thin, petite Master? "If you think I'm going to fall apart because of—!"

Shira found herself buckling, but luckily kept her balance. "Stop fighting me already!" she snapped. "That's an order from your Master!"

"If he continues to resist," Rin said, "you can always use a Command Seal."

Rin's words caused Saber to stop squirming long enough to glare at her. "That's not fair!"

"Then do as I say!" Shira snapped. "If Ilya and Berserker catch up to us, we're done for."

And with that, the running resumed. It wasn't long before Shira, having to make sure Saber remained on her back, lagged quite a bit behind Rin. It didn't help that his rising body temperature distracted her from trying to run as fast as she could.

"Shira—"

"Don't talk; just rest," she interrupted. "You've done nothing but save me from the minute you were summoned. The least I can do is save you now."

She let out a yelp as her foot suddenly got caught by a root, falling face first onto the grass. Saber grunted from the impact and quickly rolled off of Shira, but remained lying on his side, not having the strength to stand at the moment.

"What's the holdup?" Rin asked, hurrying back to reach them.

"Nothing," Shira said, getting up and facing her Servant. "I just snagged my foot on something. Come on, Saber." She bent down and grabbed the blond by his shoulders to get him to sit up, but before she could get him on her back, Saber removed her hands from him with a sigh.

"This is ridiculous," he stated flatly, "and it ends now."

Shira frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"You must go; you and Rin need to focus on saving yourselves."

"You're the one being ridiculous," Shira protested. "I just tripped; I can easily carry you the rest of the way."

Saber looked up to address Rin. "Rin, I want you and Shira to leave me behind. If she has to carry me, you will never escape. Besides," he smiled sadly, "there is no use in trying to save me."

"Saber, don't talk like that!" Shira exclaimed. She would have said more, but Rin interrupted.

"All right, would you quit your bickering?" the black-haired girl demanded irritably. "Look over there."

Shira turned to face Rin, looking to where the latter was pointing. An ancient stone building—ruins, it looked like, with a lot of moss growing along the walls—was standing a short distance from where they were. Saber made no protest when the redhead slung him on her back, and they and Rin headed to the ruins.

"What is this place?" Shira asked as Rin opened the door.

"Something they've abandoned," Rin told her. "Archer spotted it on our way here and thought we could use it as a hideout."

They walked into the ruins to find a musty-smelling room. The floor was made from the same stone as the walls, the two glass-stained windows were cracked and in need of dusting, and on the far side of the room was a plain bed with only a mattress. Shira had Saber lie down on the bed and sat beside him, while Rin remained on her feet.

"It should be awhile before Ilyasviel finds us," Rin continued. "If we're lucky, we should be able to hide here until daybreak."

"Tohsaka," Shira began quickly, "are you sure you're okay? You know, about Archer...?"

Her voice trailed off awkwardly; maybe it would've been better if she hadn't brought up Archer at all.

For her part, Rin pressed her lips together in a thin line and turned away. "Arrogant bitch," she muttered, loud enough for Shira to hear. "I told her all she had to do was buy us time, but 'buy us time' must mean 'fight until I drop dead' where she comes from."

Shira remained silent, waiting for Rin to continue venting, but the latter soon faced the former with a hardened expression.

"Still, she was my Servant, so I won't let her death be for nothing. Berserker took out Archer; I'm going to take out Berserker." Rin pounded her right fist into her left palm. "I believe that if you have time to worry, you have time to do something about it. So when the time comes, you need to be ready, too."

"Okay," Shira agreed, "but how?"

Rin shifted her gaze to look out one of the windows. "I don't care how strong Berserker is; he had to have come out of that fight with Archer with at least some injuries that are going to weaken him. I have a special stash of gems that I've fortunately brought with me, so if we can get Saber back on his feet, I should be able to come up with a plan to get us out of here."

Shira looked at the flushed, silent Saber gloomily. "But how can we do that if I can't help him?"

"The only thing he needs to get going is more mana," Rin said. "If we can at least give Saber the bare minimum his body requires, then he should be able to recover as he always has."

"Again, _how do we do that_?" Shira repeated, standing up in her agitation. "If there's any way to save him—any way at all—tell me and I'll do it! Wait a minute," her brain caught up to what she was saying, "if you're gonna tell me to force him to attack someone, you can forget it."

"I'm _not_ suggesting that," Rin said with a hint of impatience. "There aren't any souls for him to take out here anyway. I'm thinking of something a little more reliable. I want to try transferring some of your magic circuits over to Saber."

The blond lifted his head slightly. "Rin, that would—"

But Rin interrupted him. "I'll need to create a state of synergy first, and then reconnect his spiritual pathways." She looked at Shira with a very serious expression on her face. "At this point, a transplant is our only option."

"Transferring magic circuits, huh?" Shira mused. "Fine; if it'll help Saber, let's do it."

Saber stared at the redhead in disbelief as he slowly sat up on the bed. "But to a magus...magic circuits are far more valuable than their own lives!"

 _And you think you're less valuable than a few measly circuits?_ Shira thought incredulously. Before she could say as much out loud, though, Rin spoke again.

"And this transfer spell is a bit like ripping nerve endings out of your own body. If we do this, Shira, you're definitely going to feel it."

"I don't care," Shira said, "as long as it works."

"Keep in mind," Rin warned, "that transferring some of your power to Saber means you'll forever be somewhat flawed as a magus. No matter how hard you try, you'll never be able to truly reach your full potential."

"This is far too much to ask of Shira," Saber objected.

"No, it's not," Shira contradicted.

"Are you absolutely sure?" Rin pressed.

" _Yes_. I already said I'd do anything to save Saber, and if transplanting some circuits is the way to do it, then so be it."

Shira spared a quick glance at Saber, who still looked as though he couldn't believe what she was saying.

"All right; let's begin," Rin said after a pause. She stepped closer to Shira—and suddenly pulled her into a big hug.

Shira's mind promptly went blank, unable to comprehend this uncharacteristic behavior from the normally prickly, stand-offish Rin Tohsaka. Three seconds passed _very_ slowly, and Rin was still hugging Shira as though they'd been as close as sisters their entire lives. Finally, Shira shoved Rin away, her facial expression a mixture of shock at the hug itself and annoyance at the invasion of her personal space.

"What the _hell_?" she exclaimed.

"It's just some prep work we have to do to start the ritual," Rin snapped. "Trust me, this is going to be just as hard on Saber." She walked away from Shira to stand next to the blond. "In order to put you in the same state of mind, you first need to be thrown a little off balance."

"Oh, and just how are you going to— _what are you doing_?!" Shira yelled suddenly.

Rin had bent down to Saber's level, grabbed his face with both hands, and kissed him fiercely on the mouth. Shira clenched her fists at her sides as she took note of how Saber stiffened in obvious discomfort the instant Rin's lips touched his. _Stop it, Tohsaka—you're scaring him!_ She found herself resisting the urge to go over there and yank Rin away from Saber before she could do more harm to his mental health.

She also told herself that her extreme reaction had _absolutely nothing_ to do with the fact that Rin had dared to kiss Saber in the first place.

At last, the kiss was over, but then Rin proceeded to roughly push Saber—unresponsive and white-faced aside from the feverish flush on his cheeks—onto his back and straddle him.

"In order for the transplant to take effect, we must establish physical contact between each of us," Rin explained without a trace of embarrassment.

"Couldn't you have just poked him or something?" Shira groused.

Rin turned her head towards the younger girl with a pointed glare. "We need to create synergy for it to succeed; this involves you, too. Do you want to save Saber or not?"

Shira bit her lip, then forced herself to walk over to the bed as Rin stood up and went to the middle of the room. Trying not to think too hard about what she was doing, she sat herself on top of Saber, straddling his waist and placing her hands on his shoulders.

Rin's chanting became background noise as Shira gazed down at Saber. His eyes, unusually wide and fearful, stared unseeingly at the ceiling, his lips were parted slightly as if he wanted to scream but couldn't, and his body was still tense. At that moment, he looked much younger than fifteen.

There was no time for Shira to wonder about Saber's behavior; all she could do was give him a soft, reassuring smile. It seemed to work; she felt him relax beneath her and his gaze snapped back into focus.

"Shira..." Saber murmured.

The incantation concluded. Instantly, Shira felt her soul separating from her body, getting closer to Saber and being engulfed in a white light.

When the light faded, Shira found herself falling through what appeared to be a dark cavern. She briefly panicked, her arms and legs flailing uselessly in an instinctive attempt to prevent crashing onto the rocky surface, but she continued to fall. Below her was a glowing white portal, and she closed her eyes against the brightness as she went through it.

The next time Shira opened her eyes, her surroundings had changed again. The sky was a dark red and full of bright red smoke, and she was several feet above a sea of lava, a few rocks not big enough to stand on floating around here and there.

Shira decided that her soul must have entered Saber's mind. Now all she needed to do was find his spiritual core and give him one of her circuits.

She had barely started to go forward when she heard a rumble and the snapping of jaws. Shira whirled around and came face-to-snout with a huge, fire-breathing, European dragon. The dragon flew towards her, and Shira got out of the way before it could take a bite out of her. She hoped the dragon would lose interest in her, but it flew at her again, and Shira had no time to float away before the dragon bit her arm off.

A piercing scream tore from Shira's throat as she felt the sensation of falling, blood and mana flowing freely from her stump of an arm. Her heart sped up as the dragon swooped in on her, its jaws open wide.

_Saber!_

Everything went black, then Shira's vision was filled with a web of magic circuits, Saber standing in the middle of it. He was unarmored, but still held Excalibur in his hands.

 _Shira._ His voice echoed, coming from everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

 _Saber..._ she responded, but that was as far as she got before darkness consumed her again.

* * *

Shira kept her eyes closed even as her body returned to the waking world. She could feel the morning sun's rays on her and knew she'd have to get up sooner or later, but she wanted to be lazy for only a few minutes. A vague smile crossed her lips as she pressed her cheek against her pillow. She was so warm, so comfortable; she could get used to this...

Her eyes flickered opened against her will. _Huh...what's that white all about...?_

"Shira...?"

 _Is that...?_ Shira's vision finally cleared, and she saw that what she'd thought was a pillow was Saber's shirt. About half a second later, she realized that what she was lying on was a body.

A very _male_ body.

She let out a short shriek as she quickly got up and as far away from Saber as possible without falling off the bed.

"Um...uh...good morning, Saber," Shira stammered out, staring out into space as her face burned as hot as the lava she had seen in his mindscape. The irony of sharing a bed with Saber last night was not lost on her.

When she looked back at him, she saw that Saber was sitting up with his legs crossed. While his coloring was much better than it had been the night before, his face was still tinged red, likely due to their previously close proximity.

"Good morning to you, too, Shira," Saber replied as calmly as he could.

Shira momentarily paused. "I'm glad to see you're okay."

Saber nodded, the blush fading. "Well, now that I am able to regenerate my mana, it should no longer be a problem."

"Great." Shira grinned. "Looks like the transfer spell worked."

"I would like to apologize, however." Saber's voice had become solemn. "When I was receiving your circuits, I did the best I could to take only what I required, but I am afraid even that was still too much."

Shira just shrugged. "Really, it's fine. I feel like I can still use reinforcement, so the magic circuits we transplanted were probably ones I didn't even use anyway. And besides," she smiled again, "I meant what I said last night. If losing a little potential I have as a magus is the price for saving you, then I'm willing to pay it."

Saber didn't exactly smile, but the redhead could have sworn she heard his voice in her head: _Thank you, Shira._

"Well, you two seem to be doing alright." Rin's voice broke the peaceful silence. Both Saber and Shira looked to see that the black-haired girl had woken up and was now standing in front of them.

"It's a good start," Rin went on. "Come on; we've got a battle to plan."

Wordlessly, Shira stood up from the bed, looking at the other girl expectantly.

"As far as plans go," Rin said, "this one's pretty simple. We'll have to ambush them to win—our attacks must be constant so that Berserker has no chance to counterattack, and our finishing blow must be swift and successful."

"Agreed," Saber said.

"So basically, we have to jump them before they can see us," Shira summarized. "But do you really think Berserker is going to let himself get ambushed?"

"That's a good point," Rin admitted. "He has Ilya with him, so she'll be able to pick up on both your and Saber's presence."

Shira's eyes narrowed slightly. "I've noticed you left yourself out. You don't think you'd be able to ambush those two on your own, do you?"

"Of course I can," Rin retorted with a sniff. "It makes perfect sense; _you're_ the one they're after, not me. And even if they _were_ after me, I can mask my presence."

Shira fought against the urge to roll her eyes.

* * *

"Saber," Rin spoke once they'd left the ruins to stand in a forest clearing, "how much strength have you recovered?"

"Regular combat will not be an issue," the knight, now wearing his armor, replied.

Rin gave a short nod as she stood in front of a tree, placing her hand on its bark. "That's all we'll need. Saber, I want you and Shira to do your best to keep Berserker's attention. I'll stay hidden and watch for an opening. Shira, you'll need to come up with something to trick Ilya."

"No problem," Shira said. "I'll tell her you left us."

"There is still something that needs addressing," Saber cut in. "I am quite capable of fighting Berserker, but I will not allow Shira to do the same; she is no match for that beast."

"No one's asking her to do that," Rin told him before Shira could open her mouth to say anything. "Once the fighting begins, Shira will fall back and act as your rear support."

Saber frowned. "That is absurd. Shira knows nothing about black magic."

"Actually, I think I can help." So saying, Shira bent down and grabbed a nearby branch. She closed her eyes and mentally pictured the bow she'd seen Archer use, her circuits turning on and pouring mana, slowly and carefully, into the branch. When she opened her eyes, the branch had been reinforced so much that it had transformed into a bow; it wasn't quite the same as Archer's—it was crooked and not particularly impressive-looking—but it would do.

 _At least the spell worked,_ Shira thought, looking up to see Rin staring at her in slight surprise. "All I need to do now is come up with arrows the same way I came up with this."

"Okay; that's fine," Rin said, shaking off her surprise and keeping her voice neutral. She looked upward into the branches of the tree. "I'll be up there, watching as things progress. Saber, I'll wait for you to create an opening. Once you do that, I'll come forward with my gems and destroy Berserker."

"Do these gems you have respond to your magecraft, Rin?" Saber inquired as the black-haired girl pulled out almost a dozen multicolored jewels from her pocket.

"I've been saving these up like pennies in a jar since I was young," Rin told him. "Trust me, they'll work." She put the gems back into her pocket. "Let's get going."

As Rin started to walk away, Shira decided that now was a good time to speak to Saber again before any fighting could occur.

"Saber," she began, causing the blond to stop before he could take more than a few paces, "I want you to promise me something."

He turned around, regarding Shira coolly. "Yes? What is it?"

"Whatever happens—even if it'll help in defeating Berserker—I _don't_ want you using your Noble Phantasm," Shira said firmly. "I mean it, Saber; the last thing I want is for you to disappear."

A moment of silence passed; Shira half expected Saber to start arguing with her, but instead, he nodded and said, "I understand. With my current mana levels the way they are, my Noble Phantasm might not work against Berserker anyway. And if I disappeared, I would not be able to win the Holy Grail."

"All right." A light grin tugged at Shira's lips. "That's the Saber I know—someone so calm and single-minded that it's kind of unnerving."

Saber raised an eyebrow, unamused. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Shira's grin merely grew bigger. "Nothing."

"Come _on_ already!" Rin shouted from a distance. "What are you two dawdling for?!"

The redhead gave a start at the volume of Rin's voice, and when she glanced over Saber's shoulder, she could see that the other girl was several feet away and waving her arm impatiently.

 _Guess our conversation's over,_ Shira thought as she and Saber started their way across the clearing, not wanting to give Rin more reason to continue yelling.

They hadn't gone more than a few steps before Saber tripped over a root. A brief, surprised exhale escaped from his mouth as he fell forward, and Shira stepped closer and grabbed his arm to steady him.

For a reason Saber could not put his finger on, his heart quickened at his Master's touch.

"Be careful; watch where you step." Shira's voice was in his ear, and Saber was keenly aware of her breath on him, right in the spot where his shoulder and throat connected. Suddenly, every hair on the back of his neck stood erect, and his face was a few degrees warmer than it had been only seconds ago.

"...Saber?" Shira asked, noticing the slight blush on her Servant's face. "What's wrong?"

Saber remained silent a bit longer, pursing his lips. "Nothing," he finally said. "It's just...you still have not let go of my arm."

Shira glanced at her hand, belatedly realizing that Saber was right. Heat rushed to her own face as she quickly removed her hand from Saber's arm and stepped away from him. Awkward silence settled in as the pair busied themselves with _not_ looking at each other.

 _Honestly, girl; you began the morning by waking up on top of Saber,_ Shira reminded herself. _Something like this was bound to happen._

She was almost grateful for what happened next.

"I found you!"

Ilya's voice rang throughout the clearing. Shira tensed up, her senses on high alert. She vaguely heard the sound of Rin climbing ( _Ilya better not hear that,_ she thought) as Saber, his face now blank, stepped forward with the invisible Excalibur at the ready. Not even two seconds later, Ilya and Berserker stepped into view, the former curtsying as if welcoming them into her home.

"I'm surprised," Ilya began pleasantly. "I expected you to run until the very end." Her red eyes flickered to Saber, her lip curling. "Oh. I see Saber's recovered his strength. How disappointing. But really, Shira, it's cute that you think someone like him can actually beat me. The bad news is that all three of you are going to—wait a minute," Ilya cut herself off. "Where's Rin?"

"She's gone," Shira lied smoothly. "She took off a while ago. Knowing her, she's probably out of the forest by now."

"I don't know about that," Ilya countered (Shira felt her stomach clench; if Ilya knew Rin was in the clearing with them, their plan was doomed). "This forest is an Einzbern barrier. If Rin had left, I would've known about it." Her brows furrowed slightly. "Guess I'll have to kill her later."

Shira felt the knots in her stomach lessen slightly. Okay, that was good; for all Ilya knew, Rin was running around trying to escape.

"On the other hand, Shira," Ilya continued, "if you and Saber were to start begging for your lives, I might reconsider killing you."

"I have a better idea," Shira said. "If you walk away right now, Ilya, no one has to get hurt."

"Sorry, but I have to follow my grandfather's orders. As long as I have Berserker, I'm the Einzbern Master, which means I have to kill the other Masters and bring home the Holy Grail."

"Fine. If you won't do this the easy way, then as Saber's Master, I'm just gonna have to defeat Berserker and make you back down."

Ilya's eyes glittered coldly. "Then I guess you're going to die." And without another word, red, glowing patterns appeared all over her body.

Shira gasped in astonishment.

"Ilyasviel's Command Seal," Saber muttered from beside her.

 _That_ thing _is a Command Seal?_ was all the redhead could think. The pattern covering Ilya's body was enormous; it made the Command Seals Shira had look like cheap knockoffs in comparison.

"Playtime's over," Ilya stated, now glowing red.

Berserker's sudden roar was enough to shake the earth; he roared and roared as though going insane, his body radiating with mana.

"Go on, Berserker!" Ilya cried. "Kill anything in your way!"

The mad, snarling giant jumped forward, and Saber ran towards him with a battle cry. Berserker landed in the middle of the clearing with a thud, his sword swung downward. Saber parried the blow, leapt backward, then dashed at Berserker with an attack of his own. The two Servants traded blows for the next few seconds; a particularly powerful strike by Berserker sent Saber reeling backward.

The knight doubled over, clutching his side, and Shira could almost _feel_ the pained grimace on his face even though his back was to her. Fear coiled her insides, just as it had that night during Saber's first battle with Berserker. She must have not done a good job of hiding how afraid she was, because Ilya chose that moment to speak.

"Their difference in power is so obvious. If Berserker's sword so much as scratches him, your little Servant will be ripped to shreds."

Saber barely managed to evade Berserker's next few attacks. The huge sword came down; Saber blocked it, causing sparks to fly, and jumped away from another swing. But there was no time to even take a breath before Berserker struck; a grunt escaped Saber's lips as he lifted Excalibur to clash against his opponent's weapon.

 _He's nearing his limits._ Without allowing any time to second guess herself, Shira snatched another branch from the ground and quickly changed it into an arrow. She nocked the arrow into the bow she was still holding, aimed at Berserker, and let the arrow fly.

It deflected harmlessly off of Berserker's head, but it caused his attention to divert from Saber to Shira, which was exactly what the redhead intended.

"Berserker," Ilya spoke firmly, "don't bother with Shira for now. We can deal with her after you've crushed Saber."

And with that, Berserker returned his focus to Saber. He swung his sword to the ground, creating cracks in the earth and causing dust to rise. Saber leapt away from a crack speeding toward him and blocked Berserker's next swing.

Shira stared as Saber clashed against Berserker again and again, hating herself for being so useless. For all the good her bright idea of distracting Berserker did, it would've been just as well if she'd done nothing. If she tried to attack right then and there, it would only cause Saber even more problems.

 _There's nothing I can do. Saber's going to collapse sooner or later, and there's_ nothing _I can do—!_

Suddenly, Archer's words came rushing back to her: _"You only have one skill, so it is imperative that you master it. Never forget that you should always be visualizing yourself at your most powerful."_

 _Visualize..._ But Shira was ripped away from her thoughts by the sound of Saber's yelp. She gasped as she watched the knight be knocked away by Berserker. The giant advanced towards Saber, who defiantly stared up at his opponent even as he struggled to his feet.

 _A bow isn't gonna cut it with this guy,_ Shira thought. _I need something stronger. I need—_

The image of Caliburn flashed in her mind.

_I need a sword._

Berserker slashed at Saber, the strength of the former's blow enough to shatter the latter's armor. The blond stared in numb shock as his armor disappeared, leaving him in only his blue shirt and black leggings, then his expression hardened as he charged forward, Excalibur raised. Berserker's sword powerfully struck against the invisible blade in an attempt to break it as well. Slowly but surely, Saber successfully managed to knock the sword away and force Berserker back, gritting his teeth from the effort.

"Saber!" Rin called. "Out of the way!"

The words were barely out of Rin's mouth before she launched out of the trees. She quickly recited a spell and threw several gems in Berserker's direction. He deflected most of them with his sword, but one gem hit him in the arm, causing ice to spread all over both the limb and his weapon. Undaunted, Berserker reached out with his other arm and snatched Rin from the air.

If this were anyone else, it may have posed quite the problem, but Rin only smirked.

"I had a feeling this would happen. Gotcha!" She threw a few more gems at Berserker, and a tiny explosion occurred on impact.

Shira watched on with bated breath as Berserker, whose entire head was hidden by smoke, crashed to the ground. "Did that kill him?" she wondered out loud.

The smoke cleared, and although Berserker's face, head, and neck were all blackened by the explosion, they were still connected to the rest of his body. And if that wasn't enough, the overly large hand still holding Rin was tightening its grip.

The black-haired girl gasped. "No way...that's impossible!"

The gems that were thrown clearly should have been the end of the giant, and yet, he was somehow still alive.

"I guess I need to change my opinion of you, Rin," Ilya remarked. "I can't believe you actually managed to take one of Berserker's lives."

One _of his lives?!_ Shira's eyes widened in complete shock.

"Unfortunately for you," Ilya went on, "Berserker won't die unless you kill him a total of twelve times."

Rin seemed just as stunned as Shira. "Twelve times?!"

Ilya nodded smugly. "I'm sure you know the legend. Hercules had to go through the twelve labors to repent for his sins, and the reward he received was a form of immortality."

"A stockpile of lives," Rin interjected faintly. "Multiple layers of resurrection spells."

"That's why killing Berserker is going to be a problem. It's a curse of immortality that forces him to live through the deaths that he avoided in life."

As Ilya spoke, Berserker's head began regenerating, looking just as it did before Rin's gems tried to blow it off. "It's called the God Hand. It's Berserker's Noble Phantasm. That attack of yours may have taken one of his lives, but he has seven more to go."

"You've got to be joking!" Rin exclaimed, sounding as if her whole understanding of the world had been shattered. "We've got to kill this damn thing _seven times_?!"

"Rin! Get out of there!" Saber yelled.

"Berserker!" Ilya trilled, pointing up at Rin. "Turn her into mush!"

And Berserker was all too willing to comply.


	16. The Defeat of a Greek Hero

All that came out of Rin's mouth were pained grunts as Berserker squeezed her, not giving her room to even attempt to squirm out of his grasp. Saber raced towards the giant and slashed at him with Excalibur, but it had no effect. Berserker merely raised the fist still clutching Rin and punched Saber in the face, sending the knight flying.

"Saber!" Shira cried as he landed at her feet, his temple and lip bleeding.

"Come on, Berserker; hurry up and finish her!" Ilya ordered.

Saber stood up just as Berserker increased his grip on Rin. He ignored Shira calling his name again as he dashed at his opponent, forcefully striking him several times. But no matter how powerful the attacks were, Berserker could not be wounded, nor could Rin be freed.

Shira roved her eyes over the scene; she saw Rin trying to contain her screams, Berserker's emotionless face as he crushed her, and Ilya cruelly giggling. She saw as Saber continued fruitlessly slashing at Berserker, his attacks becoming more and more desperate even as his fierce expression remained unchanged.

"This has gone on long enough," she heard herself saying. " _Let her go_!"

And with that, Shira lunged towards Berserker, her bow raised. ("Shira, don't!" Saber exclaimed.) But before she could get close enough to hit him, Berserker lifted his frozen sword arm and knocked her backward, the bow easily smashing into pieces. Shira landed bodily on the grass, coughing up some blood.

"Shira!" Saber watched as the redhead struggled to her feet and went forward to Berserker again, holding her left, obviously fractured arm. "Don't be foolish; you have done enough. Stand back, Master!"

"I said let her go." Shira glared up at Berserker, as if that would be enough to save Rin. She ignored her injuries, ignored Saber's protests, and ignored the fact that she was now unarmed.

 _I need a sword,_ she thought a second time; she needed a sword so powerful that it could defeat Berserker. But reinforcement wouldn't do; if she was going to get a weapon to match the giant in front of her, it would need to be—

At that moment, the sound of a gust of wind reached Shira's ears. She turned around, and her stomach dropped as she saw Saber holding the glowing Excalibur, the wind of Invisible Air unraveling.

"No, Saber! Stop!" Shira shouted over the howling wind, her voice both angry and frantic. _Damn it, didn't we just go over this?! Didn't he agree to_ not _use his Noble Phantasm, no matter what?!_

But Saber either couldn't hear her or was ignoring her. The winds grew stronger, the golden light of Excalibur could just barely be seen...and Shira's left hand was suddenly burning.

" _I said stop_!"

Shira's second Command Seal glowed and then disappeared. The wind abruptly subsided as the glow faded from Excalibur, leaving the sword invisible. Shira let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding as Saber stumbled forward, his head bowed; although the attempt to unleash Excalibur had weakened him, it was much, much better than the alternative.

"Why did you do that?" Saber demanded harshly, lifting his accusing gaze to Shira.

She glared right back at him. _You already know why—because I'm not letting you disappear. What part of, "I refuse to let you sacrifice yourself," do you not get?!_

Saber continued when Shira stayed silent. "I have to do this, Shira! It's our only option!"

 _No, it's not._ The redhead turned away from her Servant. _You can't use your sword in your condition._ She closed her eyes, holding her hands out as if grasping an imaginary hilt. _So I'll make one for you._

The image of Caliburn reappeared in her head. Her circuits hummed with mana. She was only dimly aware of Berserker charging forward. All of her mind—all of her _being_ —was concentrated solely on creating this one sword.

Shira yelped in pain as her eyes snapped open. There, held in her burning hands, was the shining blade she had seen multiple times in her dreams, the weapon she needed to stand even the slightest chance against Berserker—Caliburn, the Sword of Assured Victory.

Saber stared on in amazement. "That sword was mine," he said. "How did she...?"

Berserker was now almost upon Shira, snarling and raising his frozen sword arm. With a yell, she dashed towards him and slashed at his unfrozen arm. The giant roared as his limb was severed from his body, but Caliburn broke like glass before Shira's eyes in that same instant.

She backed away quickly. _My visualization must've been flawed if the sword broke that easily,_ she thought.

Berserker lumbered towards her, preparing for the finishing blow, but Shira was no longer worried about him. The only opponent she had to face was herself. The image of Caliburn had to be nothing less than perfect—not just the shape, but the entire craftsmanship had to be replicated without flaw.

Her eyes shut tight.

 _Initiate projection._ A hammer went off in her head.

 _Judge the concept of creation._ Her magic circuits flipped on at once.

 _Hypothesize the basic structure._ Mana roared to life.

 _Duplicate the composition material._ Saber called her name as the huge, frozen sword was swung.

 _Imitate the skill of its making._ The sword being created blocked the attack.

 _Sympathize with the experience of its growth._ She dodged the next swing.

 _Reproduce the accumulated years._ Her sword began to glow.

 _Excel every manufacturing process._ The fully projected Caliburn rose in the air.

Berserker charged forward again, swinging wildly. Shira parried the blow, the force of the giant's attack sending her falling to the grass. She used Caliburn as a crutch as she tried to get to her feet, her legs struggling to support her weight. _I projected the sword, all right,_ she thought, _but can I actually use it?_

Shira looked up to see Berserker's latest swing. Barely a second later, Saber rushed forward, countering the attack with Excalibur before their opponent could cleave Shira in two. He backed away to stand next to her, and Berserker growled, running forward with his sword raised.

"Give me your hand," Saber said curtly, grasping Caliburn's hilt as well. Shira stared at him questioningly, but the resolute expression in his eyes was all the answer she needed.

Just as she wasn't going to let him die, he wasn't going to let her fight alone.

Berserker was almost upon them. Caliburn glowed brilliantly, and with great battle cries, Saber and Shira crashed the golden sword against the frozen weapon. The ice around Berserker's sword broke, the sword itself broke, and Caliburn stabbed fully through the giant's body.

A moment of tense silence passed; Berserker's eyes changed from red and yellow to black as the madness left them. Just then, Caliburn glowed once again, and Berserker was wholly engulfed by its light.

It only lasted two seconds. The light faded, and Shira and Saber pulled Caliburn from Berserker's body.

"So, Saber," the giant rumbled in a deep, gravelly voice, "that is your sword."

"Yes," Saber confirmed. "This is Caliburn. It was the sword in the stone that chose the king, lost for all eternity."

"But it is nothing more than an illusion created by that woman standing next to you—a legendary sword that will never exist again." Berserker paused. "I'm impressed; even the illusion is formidable."

Shira gave a slight gasp as Caliburn disappeared from both her and Saber's hands.

"I never thought a single blow from that blade," Berserker's body began to crumble, "could defeat me seven times."

And with those dying words, the Greek hero Hercules faded away like so much dust in the wind. Even the severed limb holding Rin vanished, and the black-haired girl gulped in some well-deserved air.

Shira gasped as blood suddenly rushed to her brain. She placed a hand to her head, stumbling as dizziness from using so much mana assaulted her senses.

"Shira." She felt Saber put his hand on her shoulder to keep her upright.

"I'm okay," she told him, and amazingly, it wasn't exactly a lie. Although her head felt like it would split in two, the rest of her injuries, especially her broken arm, were already healing.

Through her pounding headache, Shira peered across the clearing to where Ilya was. The little girl was staring at the exact spot where Berserker had stood only a very short while ago, completely heartbroken.

"How...how can Berserker...possibly be dead?" Ilya sounded on the verge of tears.

Saber's face hardened as he removed his hand from Shira's shoulder and readied Excalibur, but the redhead grabbed his arm before he could do anything else.

"No, Saber," she said firmly. "Ilya's not a threat anymore, not with Berserker gone."

Shira turned her gaze back to Ilya, who seemed to be unaware that she wasn't alone. For once, those wide red eyes weren't shining with childlike innocence or murderous intent, but clouded over with grief.

And despite everything, despite all the trouble Ilya had caused, the only thing Shira wanted to do right then was give the poor girl a hug.

* * *

_"My lord."_

_The woman standing before him gave a curtsy, as elegant as everything else about her. Her pale golden hair fell down her back in loose curls, her long, turquoise gown brought out the blue-green of her eyes, and the silver ornaments at her wrists, throat, and fingers shone faintly in the torchlight of the throne room. There was no doubt that she was Arthur's half sister—when he looked at her, it was almost like seeing his reflection in a mirror._

_Many men would have been struck dumb by her beauty, but Arthur merely regarded her calmly. "I welcome you to Camelot, Queen Morgan."_

_It was not long before he regretted those words._

* * *

Shira slowly awakened to see her bedroom's ceiling above her.

"Good morning, Shira," came Saber's voice from beside her futon.

The redhead grunted and blinked sleepily, not bothering to lift her head from the pillow. She only vaguely remembered the few hours it had taken to return to the Emiya estate, along with the argument that ensued about what to do with Ilya. Shira had insisted on taking her home with them, while Saber and Rin thought that was a terrible idea. Undaunted, Shira had picked up Ilya (who had passed out shortly after Berserker's disappearance) and carried her to the estate despite the protests thrown her way. After getting Ilya settled into a guest room, Shira went to her own room and was out like a light in no time at all.

"How are you feeling?" Saber questioned presently, turning his head away from his Master. "Are you well?"

Shira frowned, noticing how flat his voice sounded. "I'm fine, but what about you, Saber? Did something happen while I was asleep?"

"No, nothing happened. I..." he paused, "just had somewhat of a troubling dream."

"A dream?" Shira echoed curiously. "What about?" Did it have any connection to the dreams she'd been having?

Saber was momentarily silent, apparently wondering whether to tell her about whatever he'd dreamed or not. At last, he shifted his gaze back to her and said, "It was nothing important. Come, let's have breakfast."

Shira decided against pressing him; if he didn't want to tell her, that was his business. And anyway, breakfast was sounding pretty good right now.

She got up and headed to the kitchen with Saber; several minutes later, the air was full of the smell of frying Japanese beef patties. As Shira tended to the stove, she watched Saber gather enough dishes out of the corner of her eye. He hadn't spoken a word to her since she started preparing breakfast; his disposition wasn't cold, exactly, just distant and preoccupied.

There was little time for Shira to dwell on Saber's pensive mood before a yawning, bleary-eyed Rin entered the kitchen.

"Morning, Tohsaka," she said pleasantly, earning a mumbled greeting in reply as the older girl headed to the refrigerator.

"Ah, that's more like it," Rin commented, sounding much more awake after getting a glass of milk and taking a swig.

"You seem slightly more relaxed today, Rin," Saber stated noncommittally.

"Well, of course." Rin took another drink. "Now that Berserker's gone, we can all relax a little more. And now that you can replenish your own mana, Saber, you can easily take out the rest of the Servants alone."

Saber remained impassive. "Nothing is ever certain in war."

"You're just being modest," Rin said. "All that's left are your run-of-the-mill Servants; that should be no problem for the likes of King Arthur, right?"

Shira turned away from the stove to look at Rin in surprise. "You know about Saber's identity? When did you find out?"

"I had my suspicions, but I wasn't sure until yesterday," Rin answered. "After all, there's only one hero who can wield a sword of that caliber."

The redhead nodded vaguely, refocusing on cooking. It made sense, she supposed; she herself had realized Saber's true identity the night he killed Rider. Still, it was kind of strange to call him Arthur; aside from her dreams, Shira had heard her Servant be addressed only by his class name. To her, Saber was Saber, even with the knowledge of his true name; there was no real reason to call him anything else, and she suspected Saber preferred it that way.

"So, Shira," Rin began once the three of them had sat down for breakfast, "what do you plan to do now?"

"What do you mean?" Shira prompted.

"I'm referring to the dangerous little girl sleeping under your roof."

 _Oh, great; this conversation again._ Shira dropped her knife and fork with a clatter. "Look, I already said yesterday—"

"Rin is right," Saber interrupted, fixing Shira with a cool glare. "Taking Ilyasviel into your home is insane. How can you even trust her?"

"She's a kid; I couldn't just leave her there," Shira argued.

Rin scowled. "That 'kid' tried to kill us about three times over! And she succeeded in killing Archer, too!"

"She can't hurt us anymore, and besides, I've said from the beginning that I'm not going to kill other Masters."

"So you're just going to _forgive_ Ilya?" Rin demanded, her scowl deepening. "You're so damn soft, you know that?"

Shira bit her tongue to keep from snapping back. _Tohsaka wasn't there that day in the park,_ she reminded herself. _She just knows Ilya the Master, not Ilya the child._

"What are you so mad about, Rin?" The little girl in question walked into the dining room, apparently having eavesdropped. "All the Servants are going to disappear once everything's over. If a little thing like that bothers you, then you're not cut out to be a Master."

"Watch your mouth, you brat!" Rin snarled, pounding the table.

Ilya ignored her, opting to walk over to the empty seat beside Shira. "Wow!" she gushed happily as she sat down. "You set a place for me? Shira, you're the _best_!"

"Ilyasviel!" Saber spoke sharply. "Quiet yourself!"

The white-haired girl raised an eyebrow at him. "You actually talk like that at the table?" A small, amused smile appeared on her face as she picked up her fork. "My, what bad manners you must have."

"Shira, I cannot condone this," Saber informed the redhead sitting across from him. "Taking her in will do more harm than good."

"She's a kid," Shira repeated firmly. "And she's not a danger to us anymore, not when she's no longer a Master."

"That's not true; she _is_ still a Master," Rin contradicted. "Don't you remember what I've told you? As long as you have your Command Seals, you're still a Master. The same goes for Servants; if they've lost their Master, they have a window of time before they disappear. If Ilya wanted to, she could easily make a contract with a stray Servant."

"But I won't." Ilya set down her fork, her voice now solemn. "I'm not going to team up with any other Servant." She looked down at her plate, some fraction of the grief she'd expressed yesterday filling her eyes. "Berserker will always be the only Servant for me."

It was just as Shira thought. She didn't know what kind of relationship Ilya had with Berserker, but it was beyond clear that, as ruthless a Master as she was, she'd greatly valued her Servant.

"But," Ilya perked up, all sadness forgotten, "if you happen to lose, Shira, I'd be happy to take Saber off your hands."

"Absolutely not," Saber said with all the dignity he could muster. "I have no intention of ever becoming your Servant."

Ilya hummed. "You know, that doesn't really bother me. The end result will be the same whether I win or you just protect Shira."

And with that statement, Ilya continued eating.

"Well, _I_ still mind," Saber stated, abruptly getting back to the original topic. "Rin, I expect you to make Shira understand the foolishness of her decision."

"What?" Rin asked, coming out of a reverie. "Say that again."

"We were objecting to offering Ilyasviel sanctuary," he reminded her with a tinge of impatience.

"I don't see what the problem is," Rin said dismissively. "Ilya's at risk of being attacked by other Masters regardless of where she is, so she might as well stay here."

Both Saber and Shira stared at her, quite taken aback by her change of heart.

"Just two minutes ago, you were—" Shira tried to say.

"Great!" Ilya trilled, startling the redhead with a hug. "We're gonna have so much fun!"

"I still believe you are being ridiculous," Saber muttered as Ilya followed her exclamation with loud giggling.

"Go finish your breakfast, Ilya," Shira said patiently, trying to untangle herself from the excitable little girl's grasp.

* * *

The sound of clashing wood filled the air as Shira and Saber sparred in the dojo. They had been training for the last couple of hours, and surprisingly, Saber had not been as aggressive as he normally was. Although Shira was not necessarily landing any hits on him, the most the knight did was dodge or block her strikes; he never delivered any blows that would have sent her sprawling to the ground. What was more was that Saber's attacks seemed slower than usual, giving Shira time to either parry or evade.

After dodging yet another oddly slow strike, Shira rushed at Saber with her shinai raised. Almost at once, Saber struck her in the stomach, knocking the shinai out of her hands and sending her to the floor with a slight grunt.

 _Well, that's normal for a change,_ Shira thought as she got up, panting.

Ilya, who had been watching the match since it started, chose that moment to pipe up. "Is this really how you go about training? It seems to me that Saber's either going easy on you or just not in the mood to fight. Either way, he's holding back."

Saber's cheeks flared up in indignation. "I never hold back!"

"Actually, Saber," Shira began, "you are being more passive today. Is this a new training method or something?"

The blond opened his mouth, then closed it after a few seconds.

"You know I won't get any better if you don't come at me head-on," Shira continued. "And God knows I need to get better."

Saber was now looking uncharacteristically uncertain, his face still red. "You...want me to come at you head-on? But I...I could hurt you if I did that."

Shira frowned, confused. "You once told me that getting hurt is part of being a Servant. The same goes for sparring." Really, this whole conversation was strange. Here she was, telling Saber to be as merciless as he always was during training, and he was unwilling to do it out of a concern that he might hurt her? It was like they'd switched roles.

"You've never had a problem with attacking me before." Shira's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "This wouldn't have anything to do with me being a girl, would it?"

"No! No, of course not!" Saber insisted, shaking his head furiously. "I mean no offense; I only..." For once, he was at a loss for words. Shira had good reason to wonder about how he was acting. Before today, whenever they sparred, he had made sure to treat her no differently than he'd treated the newly recruited knights of his army, but now he found himself reluctant to be on the offensive. Even the blow he had sent at Shira's stomach to end the match was not dealt with quite as much force as usual, and the small noise of pain she had uttered as she hit the floor caused him to mentally cringe a little.

What he could not understand was why he was behaving like this.

At present, Saber set his mouth into a thin line. "Shall we have lunch now?"

Shira gave him a bemused stare, but agreed to his abrupt suggestion. Several minutes later, she, Saber, and Ilya were sitting on the dojo's floor, having sandwiches made from the meat left over from breakfast.

"You're a really good cook, Shira," Ilya said as she took another large bite of her sandwich, not noticing the bits of food on her cheek.

"Hey, Ilya, you've got—" Shira began.

"Allow me," Saber spoke up.

Ilya stopped eating as Saber grabbed his napkin and reached over to her. Both girls looked on, slightly surprised, as Saber gently wiped Ilya's face.

"There." Saber pulled back. "Now your face is clean."

The white-haired girl gingerly touched the spot where Saber's napkin had been. "Why'd you do that? I was under the impression you hated me."

"Instead of holding a grudge against you, Shira found it in her heart to let you stay in her home," Saber said. "It was compassionate of her to do that, so I suppose I can show you some basic courtesies as well."

His voice was neutral—not exactly cold, but not exactly warm, either. Still, it was a step up from Saber's earlier hostility towards Ilya, and Shira was glad for that.

* * *

The day dragged on; that evening found Shira in the bathroom, undressing and wrapping herself in a towel. She opened the door that led to the bathtub—and gave a violent start as she realized that the tub was not only full of water, but also occupied.

By Saber, as naked as the day he was born.

"Oh, my God!" Shira cried, tearing her gaze away from her Servant's unclothed body to stare out into space, her face unnaturally hot. _At least I have a towel on this time._ "I'm sorry; I—I didn't think you'd be in here."

"No, I'm the one who should be sorry." Saber kept his eyes averted from Shira as he spoke. "I should have realized you would wish to bathe after that last workout. But please, do you mind waiting for a few more minutes?"

"Uh, no, it's no problem," Shira replied. She was about to leave when Saber's voice stopped her.

"I apologize for having you see me like this." He sounded ashamed, hollow. "My physique is not terribly becoming."

"What are you talking about?" Shira thought Saber was acting strange before, but this took the cake.

"I do not want you to see my body, Shira. What woman would ever think such weak, underdeveloped muscles pleasing to look at?"

Shira whirled around. "Saber, that's—" She wanted to say he was being stupid, that he was wrong and that she never much cared for huge, bulging muscles on guys anyway. But her voice died in her throat as she took in the sight of him. He was very lean and wiry, yes, but his arms, legs, and chest still had a certain firmness to them.

Slim, but strong; not unattractive in the least.

...But was now _really_ the best time to talk about Saber's apparent body image issues? Shira mentally shook herself, realizing she'd just spent the last five seconds checking out her Servant, and turned to face the door again.

"Okay, then; I'll just let you finish."

As soon as Shira left, Saber sighed and sank deeper into the water so that less of his body was visible.

 _Well, I suppose we are even,_ he thought dully, feeling much more exposed than he had before Shira walked in. He decided to be done with his bath and get dressed as quickly as possible.

* * *

"Nothing seems to be broken," Rin said as she examined Shira's arms later that night in the former's room. "That was a powerful projection spell you conjured up; I still can't believe you did it."

"Neither can I, honestly," Shira admitted.

"You used your own mana to duplicate Saber's sword," Rin continued, sitting on her bed, "but we all know how inaccurate the human imagination can be. You could never reproduce it completely, so it's really just a half-assed form of magecraft."

Shira nodded mutely.

"And projection uses up a lot of mana; if you were to truly imagine Saber's sword, the amount of mana it would require would be beyond your capacity, practically suicidal." Rin paused before going into the next topic. "By the way, Shira, how much of Excalibur's history do you actually know?"

"Excalibur?" Shira repeated. "Well, I know that it's basically synonymous with King Arthur. It was supposed to be indestructible and able to cut through anything."

Rin raised an eyebrow. "I see. So you don't know about Excalibur's scabbard?"

The redhead frowned. "What does the scabbard have to do with anything?"

"The legend says," Rin stood up, back in her lecturing mode, "that as long as King Arthur had the scabbard in his possession, he would never bleed. Any wound he sustained would heal instantly."

This just made Shira even more confused. "But if that's true, how did he die?"

"According to the legend, Excalibur's scabbard was stolen," Rin told her.

"That'd explain why Saber doesn't have it," Shira concluded. "He's certainly lost a lot of blood since this War started, after all."

"Actually, he _should_ still have it." Rin furrowed her brow. "The Grail system summons Servants from the Throne of Heroes, getting physical manifestations of both the Epic Spirits and their Noble Phantasms. And a scabbard that can heal virtually anything would _undoubtedly_ be a Noble Phantasm."

Rin was sounding frustrated at this point. "In other words, Saber should be invincible."

"But he's not," Shira said, realizing what Rin was getting at. "And if Saber doesn't have the scabbard with him, where is it?"

The only reply she got was Rin letting out a huff, irritated that there was no apparent answer.

* * *

"You are still awake, Shira?"

Shira jumped slightly, interrupted from her attempt at projecting Caliburn by the sound of Saber's voice. She looked up to see him standing in the shed's doorway, as expressionless as ever.

"Oh, hey, Saber," she greeted. "I couldn't sleep, so I figured I'd get some magic training done."

"Do you do this every day?" Saber inquired.

"I try to." Shira shrugged. "It's kind of a daily routine that Dad drilled into me." When the knight didn't respond, she decided to change the subject. "Um, Saber, you said this morning that you had a dream."

"Servants do not dream," Saber informed her. "What I saw was _your_ dream; your memory, to be exact. Masters and Servants are connected even on a spiritual level; if their bond is strong enough, they can catch glimpses of each other's pasts."

 _So that's why I've been having those dreams about Saber,_ Shira thought. Out loud, she asked, "What was the dream about?"

"It was about an enormous fire. You and I are a lot alike, Shira, so your mistake is obvious to me. I know what will become of you if you go down this path."

"What mistake?" Shira wanted to know. "I want to save lives and champion justice, just like my dad did."

"Precisely, and that is your mistake." Saber didn't give the redhead time to form a response. "Shira, you have an unhealthy tendency towards self-sacrifice. You are always willing to put yourself in harm's way without giving any thought to your own life."

He had once been as idealistic as her, only to have it broken. Shira wanted to save everyone—not just the majority, _everyone_ —and that ideal would shatter in the face of the simple reality that not everyone could be saved. If someone was saved, it usually meant someone else would die.

 _Could Shira handle that?_ Saber wondered. _Would she be able to cope with the knowledge that her ideals are impossible? Or would it be enough to break her spirit?_

"It was that fire that shaped you," the blond stated after a long pause, "and you've carried the memory of it for a decade. You told me that it was not an easy thing to live with."

"It's not easy at all," Shira agreed, "but the fire's already happened. There's nothing I can do to change it."

Saber continued to stare at her. _Yes, there is. It might be imperative for me to obtain the Holy Grail, but you need it just as much as I do. It was surely no coincidence that I was summoned by you, Master._

"Saber?" Shira hedged.

Her Servant snapped out of his musings. "I should turn in for the night. Don't stay up too late, Shira."

So saying, Saber left, leaving Shira alone in the shed.


	17. A King's Secret and a Witch's Scheme

_He was in the royal chambers, flat on his back on his bed, with Morgan standing above him and grasping his shoulders in an iron grip. He never knew there had been anyone following him after he'd left the evening's feast, and he wasn't entirely sure how he had gotten into this position. One minute, he had heard Morgan address him and turned around to face her; the next, her eyes had glowed as she looked straight at him and he suddenly found he couldn't move._

_"This is merely a precaution." Morgan's eyes glittered icily. "I cannot have anyone interfering, now, can I?"_

_"You...plan to kill me?" Arthur forced out, struggling in vain to fight against the magic that paralyzed him._

_Morgan's lips curled into a cruel, sadistic smile. "Oh, no, dear brother; I shall not kill you tonight. I am simply setting your fate into motion." She straddled him and let go of one of his shoulders to run her fingers across the side of his face; he would have recoiled if he could. She leaned closer to him, so close her lips were almost touching his. "You just lie still..." her voice had now lowered to a whisper, "not that you have a choice."_

_Horror seeped through Arthur's veins as his brain at last registered the situation at hand. Morgan had paralyzed him, shoved him onto his bed, and settled herself on top of him...all of that could only mean one thing._

_His half sister intended to rape him._

No...no, no...I don't want this...I don't _want_ this...get off...get off... _get off of me_! _Such thoughts and more went through his mind as Morgan ripped his clothes off, stripped down to nothing, and pleasured herself with his numb, frozen body. He wanted to fight back, he wanted to scream, he wanted to_ get away _...but he couldn't move, couldn't make a sound, couldn't do anything. All he could do was wait for the nightmare to be over._

_Eventually—finally—Morgan got up and redressed. She said something to him, but he didn't hear her. After she left, he remained on his bed, naked and still motionless even as the paralysis wore off. And for the first time in a long time, he felt tears silently slide down his face._

_Arthur was not the same after the rape. He doubled his efforts in being the ideal king; he resolved to never be that vulnerable again. The rare smiles he had given to the few truly close to him were nonexistent, and if his devotion to protecting his kingdom was strong before, it was all-consuming now. He looked at every battle with an emotionless, pragmatic eye, mercilessly cutting down his enemies. He hardened his heart when ordering his men to ransack villages whenever supplies dwindled. He kept his face blank as he sentenced his wife Guinevere to death for the crime of adultery._

_The people who once lauded him as a god now reviled him as a demon. "King Arthur does not understand the hearts of men," they said. The more battles he won, the more perfect he was, the more his subjects hated him, and the more he was isolated._

_However, if one took the time to truly look at the King, they might have caught a glimpse of a broken young man who so desperately wanted to save his people, who felt that his kingship was the only thing that stood between him and utter worthlessness. And he still would rule Britain as her King in the best way he knew, no matter how much he was feared, despised, and misunderstood, no matter how many knights left his service._

_The reign of Arthur Pendragon was in the beginning of its end._

* * *

_Saber!_

Shira woke up from her dream, her body shaking with sobs.

_Saber...oh, my God, he was...he was..._

She wiped at her eyes swiftly, trying to get a hold of herself. But the image of her Servant, helpless, paralyzed, and at the mercy of Morgan le Fay, was still terribly vivid in her mind. Suddenly, things were starting to make a dreadful kind of sense: Saber's reaction to the idea of Taiga believing he'd molest Shira, his reaction to Rin's kiss the night in the ruins, his reaction yesterday when she'd accidentally walked in on him bathing...

It was like the pieces of a puzzle were finally fitting together, and it made Shira sick to her stomach to know that she hadn't realized it until now.

 _Even after getting raped, Saber still did everything he could to protect his country,_ she thought. _And those ungrateful bastards hated him for it._ Anger welled up within her. _How could they? Couldn't they see how much he was hurting? And Saber just took their abuse, right up until the very end._

Saber's voice echoed in her head. _"I_ _wish to carry out a certain obligation I have that went unfulfilled when I was alive. ... I suppose what I mean to say is that the Grail will allow me to do things over again."_

 _Do things over...?_ Shira mused. Did that mean Saber wanted to relive his life?

"Shira?"

The redhead lifted her tear-stained face to see that Saber had opened his bedroom door, looking at her in concern. Every instinct she had told her to run over to him and pull him into her arms, but she wasn't sure if he wouldn't be scared off by it.

Saber spoke again when Shira didn't respond. "Is something wrong? Why have you been crying?" He hadn't needed their bond as Master and Servant to know about her distress; it had been the sound of her sobbing for breath that woke him up.

"I just had one of your dreams," Shira said quietly. "Morgan le Fay was in it, and she was..."

The knight felt his stomach drop. Shira had left the sentence unfinished, but it was clear to him what she had dreamed about—the night his body had been violated, the night his half sister robbed him of whatever dignity he'd possessed, the night he'd tried so hard to forget.

"Shira, I am so sorry you saw that." Saber stared at the floor, not bearing to hold his Master's gaze. "What must you think of me, not being able to—"

"That wasn't your fault!" Shira interrupted fiercely, standing up. "Don't blame yourself for what that bitch did to you."

"But it _was_ my fault," Saber insisted, still looking at the floor. "I was the one who allowed Morgan into my home."

"There was no way you could've known."

"I should have; what king makes that kind of mistake?"

"Saber—"

He looked up at Shira at last, his expression flat. "This conversation is over."

"But wait—"

Without letting her finish, the blond retreated back into his room and closed the door. Shira stared mutely, her thoughts concluding what she'd wanted to say: _Don't shut me out._

* * *

By the time Shira and Saber went to the dining room, Rin, Sakura, Taiga (who had been just released from the hospital, fully recovered), and Ilya (who must have had some kind of cover story worked out, as Taiga and Sakura accepted her presence with no apparent complaint) were sitting at the table having breakfast. The pair took their usual seats, and Saber grabbed a bowl of rice without so much as a glance at Shira.

"Uh, Saber, listen," Shira began after a slight pause. She saw what Saber was doing—he wanted to pretend that nothing was amiss—but it would be worse if she just let him bottle everything up. "About that talk earlier—"

"I have gone temporarily deaf and have no idea what you are talking about, Shira," Saber cut in neutrally, taking a bite of rice.

Shira sighed, filling her plate with food without really noticing what she was getting. She looked up to see Sakura's worried gaze shifting from Saber to her.

"Did something happen between you and Saber, Senpai?" the violet-haired girl asked.

"It's nothing," Shira replied, trying to smile. "Don't worry about it."

A news report blared on TV in the background. "Early this morning, a man was found unconscious on the third floor of Fuyuki City's financial offices."

" _Another_ gas leak accident?" Taiga exclaimed as she turned her attention to the news.

Shira was careful to keep a straight face as she continued eating. Now more than ever, she was certain that all of these "accidents" were not coincidental...and being done by the witch at Ryudou Temple.

The news report was still going on by the time breakfast was over. Shira and Sakura washed the dishes, Saber remained sitting at the table, and Taiga, Rin, and Ilya all sat in front of the TV.

"This brings the total number of unexplained coma incidents up to more than thirty," the reporter said.

Taiga shuddered. "Isn't this whole thing creepy? I mean, our whole school's been closed down because of these leaks. Shira, Sakura, Miss Tohsaka, you be careful out there!"

"Everything will be fine," Sakura said reassuringly.

But as Shira gave Sakura another plate to rinse, she saw that her younger friend was tense and frowning.

* * *

Once Taiga and Sakura had left, Shira, Saber, and Rin gathered around the dining room table to discuss what they'd heard on the news. Like Shira, Rin was convinced that all of the supposed gas leaks weren't just occurring by chance.

"These incidents are getting larger in scale," Rin said. "The Master hiding at Ryudou Temple must be getting bolder now that Berserker's been taken out. If we don't do something, there's no telling how far it'll escalate."

Shira looked down, grabbing a fistful of her skirt. This was reminding her far too much of what Shinji and Rider had tried to do with the barrier. Too many people were being endangered by the witch's soul-gathering; the sooner they put a stop to it, the better.

"Disregarding the Assassin Servant guarding the temple's entrance," Rin continued, "there's the issue of all the people who live there. This makes launching an attack with Excalibur problematic."

"Okay, so full-frontal assault is out," Shira said impatiently. "Any other bright ideas?"

Ilya poked her head into the room before Rin could reply. "It sounds like you guys are trying to come up with a strategy. Mind if I join in?"

Rin pushed a lock of black hair over her shoulder with a sniff. "Little girls like you should go out and play."

Ilya scoffed as she let herself in anyway, not bothering to take a seat. "Oh, please. I've done nothing but play 'innocent little girl' since I got here." She smiled mischievously. "If you want, I can give you the inside info on what you're talking about." Her smile faded as her lips pursed. "But maybe I really _will_ go outside and play instead."

That caused Rin to give pause.

"We're listening, Ilya," Shira told her. "What do you know?"

"That stuff they were talking about on the news wasn't the work of Ryudou Temple's Master," Ilya said promptly, her features grim. "Caster's the one behind it."

Shira exchanged a puzzled look with Saber.

Rin seemed just as confused. "Are you saying that the Master at Ryudou Temple has nothing to do with the coma incidents?"

Ilya was amused by this. "You're not getting it. There's not just one Servant at the temple, there's two: Assassin and Caster."

"So did this Master somehow manage to summon _two_ Servants?" Shira wondered out loud.

"Not exactly." Ilya began twirling around like a ballerina. "You see, the person who summoned up Assassin was actually _Caster_."

"That's impossible!" Rin exclaimed in disbelief. "A Servant shouldn't have the power to summon another Servant."

The white-haired girl stopped twirling. "Sure they can. If you're a magus, you can summon whoever you want. Caster is a Servant of the magus class, and who do you think would be the best magus in the city right now?"

"That does make sense," Rin admitted, tapping her chin in thought. "Caster must have just used her own power to summon Assassin." She fell silent for a few seconds. "So, who's the Master at Ryudou Temple, then?"

"Caster is a first-class magus," Ilya answered. "She doesn't really need a Master if she doesn't want one. She killed the Master who summoned her and hid herself away at the temple not long after that. Her current Master isn't even a magus; he's just some ordinary human who Caster is using as a puppet."

Saber had let out a slight gasp as soon as Ilya said that Caster had murdered her original Master. "How could she do that?" he asked, his voice low. "How could she just turn around and kill the Master she had just formed a contract with?"

"I'm not surprised," Ilya said, "especially since Caster's true identity is Medea."

"Medea?" Shira repeated. _And here I was kinda hoping it'd be Morgan..._

"She's a backstabbing witch who dates back from Ancient Greece," Rin explained. She stood up and began pacing. "In that case, Assassin is our only real problem. Caster shouldn't pose that much of a threat against Saber."

The aforementioned knight chose that moment to speak. "Shall we attack Ryudou Temple, then?"

"If we want to stop the collateral damage, we're gonna have to," Shira told him. "And since Caster's Master isn't a magus—"

The sound of the doorbell ringing cut her off.

"Who is that?" Saber frowned.

"Emiya!" a male voice called from outside the estate. "Are you home?"

Shira got to her feet. "That's Issei."

"What?"

But Shira was already heading out into the hallway and towards the front door, so she didn't have time to answer Saber's question, nor did she notice that her Servant's eyes were narrowed in suspicion.

"Issei, this is a surprise," she greeted as soon as she answered the door, allowing him to step inside. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was just called in by Mr. Kuzuki on some student council business," Issei explained. "I thought I'd stop by and check up on you, since I haven't seen you lately."

"Oh. Thanks. I just," Shira paused for a second to think up a good excuse, twirling strands of hair around her finger, "have been a little under the weather these last few days. So," she added abruptly, "Mr. Kuzuki is at school?"

"Yes; he headed out early this morning," Issei said. "As you know, Emiya, there's always pressing matters for the—"

"Wait a minute," Shira broke in, "how did you know that Mr. Kuzuki had already left?"

"We happen to live under the same roof," Issei told her matter-of-factly.

Shira's eyebrows rose in surprise. "What are you talking about?"

Issei had the grace to look slightly sheepish. "My goodness, have I never told you? Mr. Kuzuki has been living at the temple for the past three years now."

"Really?" _Does this mean that_ Mr. Kuzuki _is Caster's Master?_ Shira could almost feel the wheels in her head turning, and she wouldn't have been surprised if she had a deer-in-the-headlights expression on her face.

Luckily, Issei seemed oblivious, and it wasn't long before he left the estate. After Shira closed the front door, she turned around to see that Saber and Rin had been listening from around the corner of the hall. As she walked over to them, she noticed Saber glaring at the exact spot where her male classmate had been standing.

"That was Issei?" he asked tersely.

"Yeah, he's a friend from school," Shira replied.

Saber's glare did not lessen. "I see."

 _What's his problem?_ Shira scowled, not understanding why it should matter to Saber if she had friends that happened to be guys. She was about to say as much, but Rin started talking before she could say anything.

"Shira, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"If that's your way of asking if I think Mr. Kuzuki is the Master at Ryudou Temple, then yes," the redhead answered.

Rin hummed thoughtfully. "It's at least worth looking into. He's not a magus, and the fact that he's staying at the temple completely fits with what Ilya told us."

"So how are we going to be looking into it?" Shira wanted to know.

"Mr. Kuzuki is at school, so I'll do some meddling and make sure he goes home late. Then we'll lie in wait and attack him when he does. We should do it tonight."

"And if you're wrong about this?" Saber asked, the cool edge in his voice still present. "Personally, I find it likely that Shira's friend is Caster's Master."

"Saber!" Shira admonished him.

The blond didn't even flinch under her glare, his face stony. "I am only saying there is more than one possibility."

"We won't do anything drastic," Rin said in response to Saber's question. "We're just going to determine whether or not Mr. Kuzuki is a Master. I'll give him a little tap with the Gandr Shot, and if Shira and I are wrong, the worst that'll happen is him having a cold for a few days."

Shira only paid half attention to Rin, continuing to stare at Saber. As much as she hated to admit it, she knew that he had a point; as both a regular human with no magic circuits and a resident of Ryudou Temple, Issei could be Caster's Master just as easily as Kuzuki. Still, that didn't explain why Saber was acting as though Issei's mere existence was offensive to him.

 _I guess I'll never know,_ Shira thought.

* * *

Night fell several hours later, and Shira, Saber, and Rin were currently hiding in an alleyway. Shira sat on her knees on the pavement, her back pressed against a metal wall and a wooden rod in hand. Rin and Saber remained standing, the latter decked out in his armor.

"If Mr. Kuzuki's going straight to Ryudou Temple after school, then he'll have to pass by here," Shira stated.

"I've gone ahead and set up a barrier around the whole area," Rin said. "If we're spotted, the game's up, but if this turns into a fight, it'll be completely soundproofed."

Shira gripped her rod tightly at the sound of approaching footsteps.

"He's close," Rin whispered as she crouched down.

A sideways glance was enough for Shira to see Kuzuki's tall, thin figure illuminated by the electric sign of the nearby convenience store as he walked along the street, carrying a bag. Once Kuzuki had passed them, Rin stood up and emerged from their hiding spot as quickly and quietly as she could. With her hand in the shape of a gun, a small black sphere appeared at the tip of her index finger and was fired straight at the back of Kuzuki's head.

But the sphere never hit its target, getting deflected before it could even graze the man's hair. Rin and Shira both gasped as a black shroud suddenly appeared, rising of its own accord. In seconds, the shroud grew to the size of a human, and suddenly, a black-hooded, purple-robed woman—Caster, no doubt—stood with her back to Kuzuki.

"I warned you, Master Souichirou," Caster said silkily. "I told you that you should wait at Ryudou Temple in case something like this should occur."

"I would argue the opposite," Kuzuki intoned. "Our prey finally took the bait."

"That's true; however," Caster's lips curved upward, "our catch doesn't look to be very big, now, does it? Come on out, my foolish little magus."

"All right, Saber, time to get ready," Rin muttered out of the corner of her mouth. "Shira, wait for the signal."

Shira bit her lip, suddenly recalling what Ilya had said about Caster's Master being used as a puppet. If that was true, did that mean Kuzuki was under a spell? _Sorry, Tohsaka, but I don't think I can wait for any signal._

"Trace, on." Shira's circuits flipped on, and mana flowed into her rod, transforming it into steel. She got up and headed out of the alleyway, Saber following suit.

"What are you doing?!" Rin hissed as both Shira and Saber stood about ten yards away from Kuzuki and Caster, their weapons at the ready.

"Well," Caster purred at Shira, "I see you catch on quickly, young lady."

Kuzuki turned to fix the girls with his typically stoic gaze. "Emiya and Tohsaka. So, it's not just Matou who's a Master now. Fate has an odd way of doing things."

"Kuzuki," Shira began, "what sort of control does Caster have over you?"

The man's eyes were now solely on her. "What makes you ask me that question, Emiya?"

"You're only a human, not a magus," Shira said, "so you might not be aware of what Caster is _really_ up to."

"Oh?" Kuzuki's expression remained unchanged. "And what exactly is Caster up to?"

"She's set up shop at Ryudou Temple and is collecting mana from people in town. She's the one behind all the mass comas that have been happening." Shira spared a glare at Caster, whose smug little smile had yet to fade. "If she isn't stopped, someone's bound to actually die sooner or later."

"I see," Kuzuki said, as casually as if Shira had just answered a question in one of his classes. "What's the problem, then, Emiya?"

Shira blanched significantly, looking shocked. "Are you _serious_?"

"The only issue I have is how Caster is doing it," Kuzuki informed her calmly. "Instead of taking only half their lives, it would be more efficient if she took all of it at once."

 _I can't believe what I'm hearing!_ Shira thought, clenching the rod in her fist. "Are you saying you don't care if innocent people die because of this?!"

"Not one bit. If you must label it, then I suppose it's evil, but I don't care how many people die to get what I want."

He said it so callously that Shira had no choice but to believe he was telling the truth. She stared furiously up into those dark, empty eyes. "So you're not a puppet—you're just a sociopath."

Kuzuki continued as though he hadn't heard the redhead. "It's true, I'm not a magus. I have no interest in this Holy Grail War." He set his bag down on the stone pavement, took off his glasses, and put them in his breast pocket. "I'm only the kind of killer you'd find rotting in the dark corners of society."

Before Shira could do more than tense up, Caster raised her hand to fire a sphere of energy at her. Instantly, Saber jumped in front of Shira, deflecting Caster's attack with Excalibur and sending the energy crashing into a window of the store.

"If what you say is true," Saber said to Kuzuki, his voice as angry as Shira felt, "then you should have no qualms about dying here. Is that not correct?"

Without waiting for a response, Saber charged forward towards Kuzuki, Excalibur raised. His sword slashed at his opponent, intending to cut the man in two and end the fight right then and there.

But to the knight's utter amazement, his attack was stopped before it could be completed. Kuzuki had leapt up as soon as Saber was in striking distance, catching the blade in between his knee and elbow.

Saber jumped back, still wielding Excalibur. "Impossible!" Who _was_ this man? He was neither a magus nor a Servant, yet he was able to stop a direct blow from Saber's sword _with his own body_?

By now, Kuzuki was back on the ground, straightening up. "Caster, enhance my fists."

Caster gave a short nod. "As you wish."

Kuzuki's hands glowed briefly, and he raced towards Saber. With a battle cry, Saber swung Excalibur, but Kuzuki jumped backward, unharmed. He ran forward again, raining a flurry of blows on Saber. The blond dodged the fists coming at him, but it wasn't long before Kuzuki punched him in the stomach, causing him to sink to his knees with a gasp. Saber looked up in time to see another punch aimed for his head, and he quickly got out of the way. There was no time for Kuzuki to pull back, so his fist smashed into the street's concrete, forming a small crater.

"I'm impressed you dodged that," Kuzuki said stoically. "Was it your swift intuition, or perhaps your dynamic visual acuity?"

Saber ducked Kuzuki's next punch, but before he could get back into a standing position, Kuzuki grabbed him by the throat, squeezing in a vice-like grip. Saber's breath came out in choked sputters, and Kuzuki threw him as easily as if he were a ragdoll. The knight flew through the air and crashed to the ground, Excalibur falling from his hand with a clatter.

"Saber!" Shira cried out when he didn't get up.

"How is this even possible?" Rin wondered out loud, nonplussed.

"Most assume that a Master's only role is rear support, but there's always an exception to every rule. For some Masters, their only asset is taking an active role in the fighting. Caster," Kuzuki's eyes flickered to his Servant, "I seem to recall asking you to kill all the other Masters."

"My apologies, Master Souichirou, but if you don't mind," a smirk played on Caster's lips, "I would very much like to deal the final blow to Saber, leaving the Masters for you."

Kuzuki silently nodded, his emotionless gaze switching back to the two girls. Shira was about to race towards him, but Rin beat her to it, hurrying a few steps forward and making a gun shape with her hand again. A black sphere appeared at the tip of her finger, but before it could be fired, Kuzuki closed the distance between himself and Rin, punching her in the chest.

"It doesn't matter how powerful a magus is," Kuzuki said as Rin had the wind knocked out of her. "Interrupt them mid-incantation and they are rendered helpless."

Rin fell to her knees, coughing violently. Shira charged forward with her rod in front of her, but one blow from Kuzuki caused it to be smashed to bits. Time seemed to slow as she watched the shards of the rod disappear. Was she falling? She couldn't tell; all she knew was that if Kuzuki could break her weapon so easily, then her death at his hands would be inevitable.

_A weapon...I need a weapon!_

As soon as that thought passed through Shira's head, a mental image of the black and white broadswords she had seen Archer use vividly appeared.

"Trace, on!"

Mana roared to life, and every bit of Shira's focus was set on projecting those two swords. _Don't double-check it, just create it!_ she ordered herself. _Visualize it and make it real! There's no difference between strengthening and duplication!_

Little by little, the broadswords conjured into existence. _Hurry up! It's not just your life that's at stake! If you don't make it work, Saber and Tohsaka will—!_

Time sped up. With a yell, Shira blocked Kuzuki's latest punch with the white blade now in her right hand. She stood up as Kuzuki backed off a little, increasing her grip on the hilts of her new weapons.

"Kanshou. Bayuka," Rin breathed as she stared at the black sword, then the white sword. "How did you...?"

Shira ignored her as she ran at Kuzuki. He effortlessly blocked her every attack with his fists, and soon Shira was forced on the defensive. The night air rang with the sound of metal as she parried Kuzuki's punches, the force of his blows eventually bringing her to her knees. Kanshou and Bayuka fell from her slackened grip, blood flowing freely from her wrists.

As a panting Shira looked up at Kuzuki, she could see the faintest hint of a cold glare on his face.

Meanwhile, as Caster approached Saber, the knight had at last mustered enough strength to grab Excalibur. He swung his sword in Caster's direction, but the witch floated away from Saber's rather weak attempt at an attack and retreated back to Kuzuki's side. Saber got to his feet and went to stand next to Shira.

Before anyone could launch another attack, Caster held up her hand. "Just stop. Why don't you cease this barbaric fighting and joins forces with us instead?"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Saber growled.

But Rin stepped forward towards Caster. "What are you saying?"

"Your objective, like ours, is to obtain the Holy Grail, isn't that right?" Caster asked rhetorically. "So why are we fighting? I know how to call forth the Grail without having to kill each other."

Shira shot up, looking incredulous. "You can do that?"

"I've figured out how the Holy Grail works. If you agree to cooperate, I will gladly share the blessings of the Grail with you all."

Rin seemed just as skeptical as Shira. "And just how do you intend to get your hands on it?"

Caster let out a small, wicked chuckle. "This area contains a spiritual leyline powerful enough to call down the Grail. All that's missing is something with enough mana to act as the key component in its summoning; once we have that, the power of the Holy Grail will be ours."

A grim smile spread across Rin's features. "Yes, that's all fine in theory, but tell me, Caster, just how many souls are you willing to burn through in order to obtain the _massive_ amount of mana this little scheme of yours will require?"

Shira whipped her head in Rin's direction. "What?"

"Let me think," Caster said. "To simply summon the Grail, I would probably need the souls of every person in this city, but that still wouldn't be enough to keep it working indefinitely." Her mouth curled into a slight sneer. "On the other hand, there really are far too many people in this world, so I can always find more. There are plenty of logs to throw on the fire, if you know what I mean."

Shira gasped, an image of that fire ten years ago flashing into her mind. She gritted her teeth in an attempt to keep the flashback at bay.

"One more question," Rin spoke presently. "This key component you need to summon the Grail would have to be a magus, wouldn't they? The only ones who can touch the Grail are Servants, but the only ones who can summon it are Masters who are also magi. Unfortunately, that Master of yours isn't a magus, so," at this point, Rin's voice became steely, "you have to find a substitute, don't you?"

"A substitute?" Shira parroted. "For what?"

"To sacrifice." Rin didn't even bother hiding her disgust. "That woman plans to offer a magus as a human sacrifice to call forth the Holy Grail!"

"'Human sacrifice' is such an ugly phrase to use," Caster said, adopting a tone reminiscent of a mother scolding an unruly child. "I will simply use a Master as a means of igniting the mana. Most likely, the magus won't be able to withstand the power and implode the instant the Grail is called down, but," the smirk on her face was downright predatory, "shouldn't one of you be selfless enough to sacrifice themselves so that another's wish may be granted?"

"Shira, Rin, pay no attention to anything she says," Saber told them curtly.

"No need to worry about that," Shira replied, glaring defiantly at their enemy.

"Oh, what a pity," Caster crooned, slipping her hand into Kuzuki's. "But fortunately for me, there's still another suitable magus besides the two of you."

With a swirl of her cloak, Caster and Kuzuki teleported out of sight, leaving Shira, Saber, and Rin standing out on the street.

"Who else could there be?" Shira asked. She racked her brain for any other magus that Caster could be after right now, but no one came to mind.

"It has to be Ilya!" Rin exclaimed after a few seconds.

"It can't be," Shira argued. "Ilya's not a magus."

"Well, who else is there?" Rin snapped, a little too defensively.

"I have to get back." Saber leapt into the air in the direction of the Emiya estate.

"Wait, Saber!"

But Shira's voice fell on deaf ears as Saber continued on his way.

* * *

It was starting to rain by the time Saber arrived at the estate. He hurried inside, bursting into the living room to find not only that all the lights were off, but a familiar-looking figure was lying on the floor.

"Sakura!" Saber dashed over to the violet-haired girl's prone form, kneeling down to gently shake her shoulder.

Sakura slowly sat up, blinking as if regaining consciousness. "Saber..." Her eyes were wide with fear.

The knight allowed himself a small, comforting smile. "It's all right; I am here."

The words were barely out of his mouth when Sakura suddenly stabbed him in the chest. Saber stiffened, much more from shock than pain, and looked down to see Sakura pull out a crooked, multicolored dagger from where she had stabbed him.

Saber stood up and backed away from the girl. "Sakura?"

Sakura got to her feet as well, and when she opened her mouth, Caster's laughter was what came out.

"You grew careless, Saber," Caster said through Sakura, lifting the dagger. "This is my Noble Phantasm, Rule Breaker. It negates all magecraft."

"What exactly does that mean?" Saber asked, dreading what the answer would be.

"This girl's mana levels weren't strong enough for me to wipe out the contract you have with your Master," Caster/Sakura informed him, "but I _was_ able to take away your trump card. I'm afraid you won't be able to use that special sword of yours."

Appalled, Saber opened his mouth again, but he yelped as a pink light engulfed him, forcing him to the ground. And with that, Caster/Sakura left the room.

Shira and Rin arrived not two seconds later.

"Saber! What happened?" the redhead asked urgently.

"It's Sakura." Saber winced in pain as he stood back up. "Caster has Sakura."

 _What?!_ Shira thought, her eyes widening. _But Sakura isn't a magus!_

Caster's evil laughter could be heard from outside. Rin and Shira rushed out into the front yard to see Sakura with a dangerous-looking dagger in her hand.

"This girl is the perfect sacrifice to call forth the Grail," Caster's voice crowed from Sakura's mouth. "She's full of latent magic circuits."

From beside her, Shira could've sworn she heard Rin take a sharp intake of breath.

A smirk that didn't belong on Sakura's face crossed her lips. "If you two think you can save her, then meet me at my temple."

With another cackle of laughter, the possessed girl rose into the air and flew up into the dark storm clouds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In some stories where Mordred is Arthur's inbred, illegitimate son instead of his nephew, either Morgan or Morgause (depending on who the writer says is Mordred's mother) disguises herself as Guinevere and tricks Arthur into having sex with her—basically, rape by fraud. Since I decided for this fic that Saber's marriage to Guinevere wasn't a particularly passionate one, I went with a more...direct approach for Morgan to get pregnant by Saber: magically paralyzing him and proceeding to force herself on him.


	18. Decisive Battle

Lightning flashed across the dark sky, illuminating Ryudou Temple for only a second. It was still raining by the time Shira, Saber, and Rin finally reached the stairs that led to the temple, the trees surrounding the mountain providing little protection from getting wet. However, Shira could hardly think of how soaked and chilled she was at the moment.

"Sakura..." she muttered. It hadn't taken too long for them to get to their destination—a little over half an hour would be her estimate—but that wouldn't mean anything if Caster had decided to do away with Sakura in between the moment she'd captured her and now.

Rin must have noticed the worried note in Shira's voice. "It's okay. She's fine."

"You can sense it?" the redhead asked.

"Caster said it herself: her only objective is to sacrifice Sakura," Rin continued, looking away and ignoring Shira's question. "She won't kill her because she needs her."

"But why did Caster abduct Sakura in the first place?" Saber wanted to know. "I was under the impression that she did not possess any magical talents."

"Sakura has magic circuits," Rin said simply, still not looking at either Saber or Shira. "And she also comes from a long line of magi."

Shira stared at the black-haired girl's back quizzically; she was still trying to wrap her mind around the notion that Sakura apparently had the capacity to use magecraft. Sure, she knew the Matous were a magi family, but she also knew their magical powers were dried up. If Shinji hadn't had magic circuits, why would Sakura have any?

Rin's voice broke Shira out of her musings. "Let's go; we can't waste any more time. Sakura's as good as dead if we don't do something quickly."

And with that, Rin proceeded to run up the stone steps, Saber and Shira following after her. After a few minutes, the first flight of stairs had been crossed, and they would have continued running up the smaller flight if Rin hadn't suddenly stopped dead in her tracks with a slight gasp.

"Rin, what is it?" Saber asked after nearly five seconds of silence.

"This way." Instead of hurrying up the remaining steps, Rin got off of the staircase entirely to walk into the woods, and Shira and Saber had little choice but to follow.

 _What's gotten into her?_ Shira wondered when they stopped again in front of an area of the mountainside flanked by trees. It was another thing that she couldn't figure out. She had assumed Sakura and Rin barely knew each other, yet the latter seemed even more concerned than she was about the former's welfare. Why? Granted, Rin wasn't nearly as heartless as she pretended to be, but her reaction over the plight of a girl she'd had spent only about a week or less around seemed pretty extreme.

At present, Rin stepped closer to the mountainside, holding her hand out in front of her and chanting a spell. As soon as she touched the rocky surface, a black and red portal appeared, and she, Saber, and Shira stepped inside to find themselves in a dark cavern.

After a few minutes of running, they came to the end of the tunnel, stopping at a staircase that sloped downward, a stone arch directly above where they stood. What was before them looked almost like a small town, albeit underground. On both sides of several flights of stairs were many little houses, and the stairs led to a place overlooking the houses, surrounded by Greek pillars.

"Can you _believe_ it?" Rin asked rhetorically, her voice humorless. "Caster's really outdone herself."

"How's she able to create all this?" Shira wondered out loud.

"Magic," Rin answered, not elaborating further. "But right now, we've got bigger things to worry about."

It was true; even as Rin spoke, bony, skeletal beings walked out of the houses and slowly advanced towards them. Without another word, Shira, Saber, and Rin launched themselves at the skeletons. Rin fired Gandr Shot after Gandr Shot at their enemies, blowing them to bits, while Shira and Saber hacked the skeletons that came after them to pieces with Kanshou and Bayuka and Excalibur respectively.

Caster's minions weren't at all a threat, but with every skeleton that was destroyed, at least five more took its place. It wasn't long before dozens of skeletons were facing them, their backs to the stone arch the three had previously stood under.

"We're getting nowhere with this," Shira complained.

But seeing the stone arch seemed to give Rin an idea. "Saber! Above you!"

Saber gave a short nod, apparently understanding. He leapt forward, Excalibur raised, while Rin fired a series of black spheres at the pillars holding the arch together. Saber sliced at both the pillars and the rocky wall, the resulting debris crushing all of the skeletons. The knight landed on his feet in front of Shira and Rin, and they hurried up the stairs to where Caster was surely holding Sakura hostage.

They had gone up two flights of stairs when a sudden gust of wind forced them to halt. The wind passed as quickly as it had come, and a glance upward revealed that a purple-clad samurai stood at the top of the third flight of stairs.

"Assassin." Shira heard Saber gasp softly from behind her.

Assassin turned his gaze to the blond. "Why are you so surprised? You know very well that I am the gatekeeper here."

Saber, Shira, and Rin all tensed, but Assassin only said, "You two Masters can relax. Both of you are invisible to me."

"What do you mean?" Shira pressed, even as she allowed herself to obey the samurai.

"My only duty is to eliminate Servants," Assassin explained calmly, "so I will face off with Saber, the most capable Servant of all. It makes no difference to me if these two slip by in the process."

Saber paused only briefly. "Very well, then. Shira, Rin, go on ahead."

Shira turned around to stare at Saber. "What?"

Rin answered before Saber could say anything. "There's no time for any arguing; we have to go."

The redhead bit her lip; it wasn't like she thought Assassin would pose a serious problem for Saber, but leaving him behind didn't sit well with her.

"Just...be careful, okay?" was all Shira said to her Servant.

Inexplicable warmth rose in Saber's chest. Any other time, Shira fretting over his safety would have confused or annoyed him, but now it was almost...endearing, he supposed.

Nonetheless, he did not stop to ponder what that meant. "You take care as well," Saber told Shira, trying to keep his face stoic (and not entirely succeeding).

Nodding quickly, the redhead turned around and ran up the steps with Rin, leaving Saber alone with Assassin.

"You have my thanks," the knight said.

"Oh, there's no need to thank me," Assassin replied blandly. "I simply wish to enjoy this fight for as long as possible. Being summoned by a Servant, there's only so much mana my body has."

As if to emphasize his point, Assassin's body suddenly glowed with magical energy, the white color making him appear ghostly. "I don't even know if I have enough to last until morning," he added as he pointed his katana at Saber.

In response, Saber readied his sword.

* * *

At last, Shira and Rin had raced up the last flight of stairs. They could now see that the pillars they'd seen from a distance once they had entered Caster's underground hideout were circling a large, round pit, but there didn't seem to be any sign of either Caster or Sakura.

 _How much farther do we have to go?_ Shira thought in frustration as she and Rin hurried forward. But all her mental grumblings ceased once they looked down into the pit.

"Sakura!" Rin breathed.

Indeed, there Sakura was. She was standing on top of a dark red altar, dressed in a black, skintight bodysuit and surrounded by a red magic circle. Shira and Rin were too far away to see her face, but they could just barely hear her ragged, shallow gasps, sounding as if she had just run a ten-yard dash.

"Sakura!" Rin repeated loudly, getting ready to run over to her.

Sudden footsteps reached Shira's ears, and she swiftly turned to see Kuzuki with his fist outstretched, right in the direction of Rin's head.

"Tohsaka!"

Barely a second later, Shira rushed in between Rin and Kuzuki, raising Kanshou and Bayuka in front of her to prevent Kuzuki from smashing his fist into the back of Rin's skull. Startled, the black-haired girl stopped and turned back, momentarily forgetting about her current goal.

"Nicely blocked," Kuzuki remarked tonelessly as he stepped away, lowering his fist. "You must be accustomed to being ambushed."

Shira ignored him. "Tohsaka," she began, "I can handle this guy. Just focus on saving Sakura."

She didn't have to look to know that Rin was fine with that arrangement. No sooner had the older girl hurried away did Kuzuki remove his glasses again and place them in his pocket. He charged forward, his fists at the ready, and Shira barely had enough time to parry his blow.

For the next few minutes, that was all Shira did: block Kuzuki's punches with her twin blades before he could hit her. The man's attacks were fired in quick succession, not allowing the redhead any time to formulate a countermeasure.

 _I don't know how long this can go on,_ Shira thought as she blocked yet another punch. Just then, she heard a scream that sounded like Sakura. She took her eyes off of her own fight to look down at the pit. She watched fearfully as pink light shot upward from the magic circle, Sakura glowing purple with mana. Was Caster trying to summon the Holy Grail already? _No! We can't be too late!_

"Hold on, Sakura!" Rin cried.

But Shira never saw what happened next. Kuzuki took advantage of her momentary distraction by rushing at her and punching her in the face. She reeled back, and before she could regain her bearings, Kuzuki had punched her two more times, sending her flat on her back.

She rolled over onto her stomach, crawling along the rocky ground to hide behind a pillar. She slowly stood up, her breath coming out in pants and Kanshou and Bayuka miraculously still in her hands. Shira was positive that her nose had been broken by Kuzuki's latest blows, but even now, she felt it in the process of healing.

Her brief respite was shattered the instant Kuzuki smashed his fist into the pillar, just barely missing her head.

* * *

The clanging of steel filled the air as Saber's sword clashed with Assassin's katana. Saber swung at Assassin's feet, but his opponent expertly avoided the attack and made to strike again. The knight parried the blow and continued slashing at the samurai, who blocked each one.

For the second time in as many minutes, both blades collided with each other, sparks flying, and Saber leapt back a little.

Assassin chuckled. "Such impeccable swordplay. I would expect nothing less from you, Saber."

"I could say the same about you." Saber lunged forward, swinging Excalibur, but Assassin evaded his fierce strikes. He struck against the katana, hoping to disarm his opponent, and Assassin counterattacked. The force of the blow send Saber flying backward, and he landed on the stone surface dividing one flight of stairs from the next.

"I cannot remember the last time I fought someone with such a composed technique," the knight continued. "You said your name was Kojiro?"

"Just call me Assassin," the other man said. "'Kojiro' never actually existed. He's a man with a forged past and a master swordsman only in the minds of people."

Saber's face betrayed none of his surprise at this declaration. "Are you telling me that you are a fictional hero?"

"I am," Assassin said simply. "I have no place to go back to or any wishes I want granted; I'm just a nameless swordsman acting out the role of Kojiro Sasaki. So," his face hardened as he raised his katana, "this battle here," he rushed towards Saber, who blocked the attack just in time, "is all I wish."

And with that, the fight resumed. What followed was a series of furious strikes from both combatants, more sparks flying as the two blades clashed. But no matter how many times one Servant launched an attack, the other would deflect and deliver an attack of their own. At last, when Assassin attempted a horizontal slash, Saber blocked it aggressively, pushing Excalibur against the katana and gritting his teeth from the effort. The power behind his blow was enough to force the samurai back a few paces, but he lunged forward before Saber could do anything else.

Saber just barely managed to parry Assassin's strike, and the former followed up on it by rushing forward, swinging his sword in the latter's direction. Assassin was able to sidestep the attack, getting away with only a long, thin scratch on his face. After trading a few more blows, Saber abruptly stopped, gasping as he noticed the column of pink light up ahead. _Sakura!_

But there was no time to worry about Sakura being used as Caster's sacrifice. Saber tore his gaze away from the light to see that Assassin was charging towards him. The knight jumped out of the way of his opponent's attack and, with a battle cry, swung Excalibur downward. Assassin lifted his katana before the sword could slice up his face, and Saber rained more strikes against him. The samurai was forced to step backward as he parried Saber's attacks, but a slight smirk had crossed his face. A few seconds later, Saber understood why.

"Damn it!" he cursed. At this point, both Servants stood on the very _flat_ stone surface rather than the stairs.

"That's right." Assassin's smirk broadened. "Now that I'm on level footing, I can finally unleash my Turning Swallow Strike."

Saber forced back a frustrated exhale, scanning the area for any means of evading Assassin's technique. Even so, he knew it was a hopeless endeavor; when executed properly, the Turning Swallow Strike left no room for defense. During Saber's first fight with Assassin, he'd only been able to block the technique because the samurai was unable to send three strikes at him. Now, though, Assassin had the advantage, and no matter what Saber did, whether he tried to rush him or hurry onward to where Shira and Rin had gone, the Turning Swallow Strike would be used.

The knight briefly turned his gaze to the circle of pillars up ahead. The pink light had disappeared, but he didn't know if that was a good thing or not. For all he knew, Caster had gotten her hands on the Holy Grail and Sakura, Rin, and—he suddenly felt his insides clench—Shira were dead.

"This is a fight to the death," Assassin said presently, causing Saber to look back at him. "Stop thinking about what will happen next."

A snarl rose from Saber's throat, and he impulsively rushed forward, slashing at his opponent. Assassin blocked the attack, but Saber exerted more force against the katana.

"You and I were called forth to fulfill certain duties," the samurai spoke as the blades continued to clash. "Just as it's my duty to guard this gate, you too have something to protect. There's nothing to be hesitant about. And besides, need I remind you that you're not the only one who's almost out of time?"

Saber regarded Assassin coolly. "My apologies. You're right; neither of us has time to spare."

So saying, Excalibur began to glow as mana was released, forcing Assassin to slightly retreat. Saber readied his sword, the glow having faded, and the other man lifted his katana, pointed horizontally and at level with his head.

Assassin closed his eyes. "Secret technique." His eyes snapped open a scant few seconds later. " _Turning Swallow Strike_!"

The katana struck, not once, not twice, but three times simultaneously. However, Saber's sharp eyes had suddenly spotted an opening—a very small opening in between Assassin's left arm and waist—and with a battle cry, he charged at that opening with all his might—

 _Clang_!

And the two Servants were now standing some feet apart, their backs to each other. Aside from his armor being chipped, Saber remained unharmed from the Turning Swallow Strike. He turned around to face Assassin, and his opponent did the same, wasting no time in hurrying forward, the katana ready to strike.

But as fast as Assassin was, Saber's own attack was a bit quicker. The latter slashed at the former, who let out a pained grunt as blood spewed from his chest. And with that blow, the fight was over.

Saber watched silently as the dying Assassin tensed up to prevent himself from falling.

"Go," was all the samurai said, and Saber promptly turned around to hurry up the stairs, not looking back for an instant.

* * *

Shira scrambled out of the way as shards of the broken pillar fell to the ground. She whirled around to face Kuzuki, charging forward with a yell. Kanshou and Bayuka sliced through the air as Shira swung the broadswords at Kuzuki, but her opponent dodged and sidestepped every blow that came his way.

After quite a few rounds of this, Kuzuki ran towards Shira, his fist aimed at her face, and she blocked his attack just in time. She dodged his next punch, then raised Bayuka, preparing to stab him. He merely turned to the left to evade her, dodged her next swing, and punched her in the stomach, causing her to fall to the ground with a yelp.

She got to her feet, ignoring the pain, her swings becoming more wild and aggressive. Kuzuki parried her blows, and soon Shira was on the defensive again, the sound of ringing metal filling her ears as she blocked the older man's punches. The power behind Kuzuki's attacks forced her to step backward until her back hit a pillar, and she swiftly jumped away to avoid his fist.

Scarcely a few seconds later, Kuzuki was rushing towards Shira, who raised Kanshou and Bayuka to protect her face. The punch her opponent delivered was enough to smash both blades into pieces. Shira's eyes widened in slight shock as both the shards and the hilts faded away, and the next punch Kuzuki delivered sent her flying. A shrill scream tore from her throat as she fell, landing face first on the ground of the pit.

"Shira!" Rin exclaimed nearby. The redhead didn't answer as she struggled to get up, dimly hearing Kuzuki descending some stairs and walking to where they were.

"Master," came Caster's voice, "please go inside. I can handle these two all by myself."

At this point, Shira managed to stand up and walk to where Rin was holding an unconscious Sakura. "Tohsaka, can you get out of here?"

"Unfortunately, no," Rin responded lowly.

"I have quite a finish in store for you," Caster said silkily. She lifted her hand, her palm facing Shira, and a glowing ball of energy appeared. The glow intensified as Caster prepared to fire.

"Shira! Stand back!"

Shira turned around just in time to see Saber leaping into the pit towards Caster, his sword raised. Caster's glowing energy disappeared and was immediately replaced by a purple, transparent force field. Excalibur hit the quickly constructed barrier, causing sparks and light to emit from the latter, and Saber jumped back to stand next to his Master.

"There's no way you can defeat me," Caster said smugly, "not after being struck by my Rule Breaker. You of all people should realize this, Saber, so don't be such a fool."

Saber clenched the hilt of Excalibur, unpleasantly reminded of the fact that his sword's full power was currently sealed.

"This temple is an extension of myself," Caster continued. "Without your Noble Phantasm, do you truly believe you can destroy an entire city?"

The witch paused thoughtfully, turning her hooded face in Shira and Rin's direction. "You know, perhaps I _should_ sacrifice both of you. It would definitely allow us to see the Holy Grail at its finest. However," now her attention was solely on Shira, "depending on your cooperation, I may be persuaded to spare the life of Saber's Master."

"At what cost?" Shira asked.

Caster smiled wickedly at the knight. "All Saber would have to do is become my slave. I'm certain you would be a far better pawn than my late Assassin was."

Shira froze at that declaration. She didn't look to see Saber and Rin's reactions, but she heard the former's jaw clench. Her lips parted, but before any words came out of her mouth, an unfamiliar, masculine voice broke in.

"That's enough. It seems to me that you have forgotten your place, lowlife."

Caster gasped as she, Shira, Rin, and Saber turned in the direction of the voice. There, up at the edge of the pit, stood a blond-haired man wearing golden armor (a Servant, no doubt...but how could there be _eight_ Servants?). However, as unexpected as the man's arrival was, it wasn't the most shocking part: behind him, a large red wall (or at least what looked like a wall to Shira) concealed about a quarter of the underground temple from view, with hundreds of weapons embedded in it.

"You have become nothing more than a fool grasping at straws." The man spoke with an arrogant, disdainful air, and Shira was strongly reminded of Shinji. "Watching this event play out has been rather amusing; however, that last statement of yours went too far, Caster."

His eyes were cold as he stared at the witch. "You disgusting little magus! You presume that you're at liberty to take the King's tools whenever you wish?"

"I am nobody's attack dog!" Saber burst out, surprising Shira with the ferocity with which he glared at the golden-armored Servant.

But Saber's proclamation was ignored. "There's only one punishment for such a despicable crime. So long, mongrel."

With those last three words, the weapons which had stayed motionless up until now shot into the pit.

"Master!" Caster cried as she hurried in front of Kuzuki, conjuring up another force field and managing to block some of the projectiles. But while she had been effortless in deflecting Saber's Excalibur, it was clear that trying to do the same against so many weapons was more difficult.

Three swords appeared from nowhere and placed themselves in the Servant's hand. He threw them in Kuzuki's direction—

And Caster dispelled the force field to get closer to her Master, screaming as all three blades hit her instead.


	19. Revelations and Epiphanies

"Master!" Caster gasped out as she turned around and stumbled towards Kuzuki, her face no longer covered by her hood and her robes bloodied and torn. "Did you get hurt?"

"I'm fine," Kuzuki replied stoically, still standing even as the golden Servant's weapons continued to fall all around them.

"That's good; I couldn't bear the thought of you hurt." Caster gently cradled Kuzuki's face in her hands. "It is unfortunate, but," her body was slowly becoming transparent, "this comes just as my dream was in sight."

"There is nothing to grieve over," the dark-haired man said. "I will personally see that your dream comes true."

"I don't know if that will be possible, and besides, my wish has already...come true." At this point, Caster had almost completely vanished. "Take care of yourself..."

Caster was no more barely a second later; all that was left of the witch Medea was her black, bloodstained hood and Rule Breaker. Both fell unceremoniously to the ground...along with Kuzuki, blood spilling freely from wounds he'd let his Servant believe were nonexistent.

Shira, Rin, and Saber stared mutely at Kuzuki's dead body. Just then, a sound like several gusts of wind coursed through the cavern—the pillars and the altar were starting to disappear.

The Servant up on the edge of the pit spoke as if nothing was happening. "It's been a long time, Saber. I see you're just as defiant as ever." His voice was derisive, and Saber fixed him with another glare. "Only a fool would dare to reject a proposition from someone like me. We will meet again, Pendragon, and when we do, I suggest you reconsider your answer from ten years ago."

The man disappeared into spirit form, and Shira turned to face Saber.

"Saber, who was that guy?"

But he ignored her question. "We need to get out of here. Rin," he walked to where the black-haired girl was kneeling, "let me carry Sakura."

"No, it's fine, I've got her," Rin protested, standing up and slinging the still unconscious Sakura onto her back.

Shira's eyes strayed to Kuzuki's corpse. "So what do we do about—?"

"You heard Saber," Rin interrupted. "Let's hurry!"

And with that, they took off running out of the now rapidly fading underground temple, Shira (whose battle with Kuzuki had left her rather battered) leaning on Saber for support. Even the stairs they quickly descended and the houses surrounding them were disappearing at an alarming rate. At last, they reached the tunnel, and Rin hurriedly chanted the spell that would open a portal outside Ryudou Temple. By the time everyone made it out safely, Caster's domain was as gone as if it had never existed.

* * *

Shira began the next morning by cooking a quick breakfast for herself, Saber, and Rin (Ilya would have been included, but when Shira went to her room, she saw that the little girl was feverish and paler than usual, so she decided to let her continue sleeping). No one talked much as they ate, and it was only when breakfast was over and the dishes were washed that the topic of the mysterious eighth Servant was finally brought up.

"Yes, I do know that Servant," Saber said when questioned by Shira, "as loathe as I am to admit it. He is of the Archer class, and we were both Servants in the previous Holy Grail War."

The redhead blinked in surprise. Saber had been a Servant before? She suddenly remembered taking note of his knowledge on Ryudou Temple even though he had apparently never been there. _Well, I now have an answer to_ that _question,_ she thought.

"Our final battle took place on the last day of that War," Saber continued, "amidst a sea of flames."

 _A sea of flames...?_ Shira felt her body tense as an image of that fire flashed into her mind, but she quickly forced herself to shake it off. She had already been told by Kotomine that the fire had taken place during the fourth Grail War, so the fact that Saber had fought around that time should not be so shocking.

"So what happened?" Rin asked. "Did you win?"

Saber frowned. "Unfortunately, no; I was unable to defeat him."

"You lost?" Rin sounded incredulous. "Even though you must have been properly summoned?"

Shira stared at her Servant as he remained silent. Personally, she could understand Rin's disbelief. It was one thing for Saber to not necessarily win a battle while being contracted to Shira, but with a proper Master, he ought to have been at full power. In that case, would Saber losing a fight even be possible, especially since he had none other than Excalibur as his Noble Phantasm?

Either Saber wasn't truly as strong as Shira believed...or this Archer Servant had an insane amount of power. And considering how easily the man had killed Caster and Kuzuki, the latter option was looking to be the more likely of the two.

"I wonder if this Servant wasn't summoned for this War at all," Rin mused presently, "and just decided to stick around after the last one. Only seven Servants can be summoned for any given Grail War. If there's a Servant who isn't one of those seven, he could only be the victor of the previous War. He must have used the Grail to stay in this world permanently."

Shira's heart gave a sudden jolt at Rin's last sentence. _Can that happen?_ she thought. _If what Tohsaka is saying is true, that means Saber—!_

"Regardless, this doesn't change the fact that he appears to be our enemy," Rin went on, wrenching Shira away from her thoughts. "Saber, did you ever find out his real name?"

Saber shook his head. "I did my best to discover that in our previous battles, but always to no avail. The Noble Phantasm this Servant uses does not give away his identity."

"Maybe he doesn't really have one," Shira suggested.

"Of course he does—he used a ton of them last night!" Rin contradicted. "Figuring out his name should be easy."

"But did you recognize even one of the Noble Phantasms he used?" Saber questioned.

Neither Shira nor Rin had any answer to that, so Saber continued. "He has a seemingly endless supply of Noble Phantasms, and even if you could recognize some, they all appear to originate from different lands and mythologies. Therefore, his identity cannot be figured out based on his Noble Phantasms."

"Okay, fine, so we don't know who he is," Rin said. "What about his objective?"

"In the last War, he wished for nothing less than the annihilation of everyone he deemed useless," Saber explained coolly. "During our final battle, he offered—quite condescendingly, I might add—to spare my life if I would surrender and become his subordinate." He grimaced slightly as if the idea had left a bad taste in his mouth. "He wanted to use me as a weapon, just as Caster did the previous night."

"You turned him down, didn't you?" Shira guessed. _And with extreme prejudice, no doubt,_ she mentally added.

"Yes," Saber replied, nodding curtly. "Whoever he is, it would not surprise me if he was a tyrant in his original life. And I refuse to yield to tyrants."

The room fell into a long silence. Finally, Rin stood up from the dining room table. "I should be getting back to Sakura's place. Someone should be there when she wakes up so she doesn't think she's alone."

Neither Shira nor Saber batted an eye at this. After a brief conversation they'd had last night while returning to the Emiya estate, Rin's concern for Sakura was no longer a mystery.

_"Rin, are you certain you do not want me to carry Sakura for you?" Saber asked once they'd left the mountain and were back on the street._

_"I told you already, it's fine!" Rin snapped, resuming walking while still having the violet-haired girl on her back._

_"What's wrong, Tohsaka?" Shira wanted to know. "You've been like this ever since Caster kidnapped Sakura."_

_Rin stopped and turned around with an irritable glare. "Mind your own business!"_

_"Sorry, that's kind of hard to do," Shira said flatly._

_The older girl continued glaring, then turned away. She let out a sigh, and when she next spoke, her voice had lowered considerably. "If you must know, Sakura's my sister."_

_Saber and Shira exchanged surprised glances._

_"Your sister?" Saber repeated._

_"But Sakura's surname is Matou," Shira pointed out._

_"She was born a Tohsaka, but was adopted by the Matous when we were kids," Rin explained. And that was all she would say on the topic._

* * *

Ilya was still fast asleep when Shira went to check up on her. The white-haired girl's cheeks were high with color, and Shira hurried to get a damp cloth from the bathroom. She wasn't sure what brought this illness on—did Ilya wander around in the rain last night or something? In any case, Ilya didn't seem like she would be waking up any time soon, and Shira left the guest room shortly after pressing the cloth to the little girl's forehead in an attempt to cool her down, wishing there was more she could do.

She wandered out on the porch to see Saber standing out in the yard, his back to her. The redhead bit her lip as she thought about what she wanted to say to him. Actually, there were plenty of things she wanted to say to him—about the Holy Grail and why he wanted to obtain it, for starters—but how should she begin?

"Saber," Shira called out after a long pause, "about what Tohsaka said earlier..."

The blond turned to face her. "Yes? Regarding what?" He sounded calm, even disinterested.

Nonetheless, Shira went on; she didn't think she'd be able to keep her thoughts to herself for much longer. "If they want to, Servants can use the Holy Grail to stay in this world. Which means—"

"I have absolutely no intention of staying here," Saber interrupted. "If I obtain the Holy Grail, I will use it to return to my era."

"I was afraid you'd say that," Shira said, her heart sinking. "You want to redo the selection of the king, don't you?"

Saber's silence only served to answer her question. It was something she had suspected since yesterday, but she hadn't wanted to look into it too deeply. However, now that it had been voiced out loud, there was no way she could simply ignore it.

When Saber finally spoke, it was in a solemn tone. "It is a king's duty to protect his country. I had always felt that my strength was not equal to the task, and the...incident with Morgan only confirmed it. The least I can do is ensure that a more suitable king is chosen in my stead."

Shira clenched her fists so hard that she wouldn't have been surprised if she'd drawn blood. "That's ridiculous!" she cried out, her voice a mixture of anger and desperation. "This isn't about the duties of a king! All you're doing is letting the past control what you do in the future! You're here now—you're _alive_ now!—so do whatever you want!"

She took a breath, then continued in a softer voice. "If you want to change yourself, then I won't stop you. But please, _please_ try to do that in the present, not the past."

Saber avoided her gaze. "Shira, I would appreciate it if you would drop this subject."

Just like yesterday, he wanted to put an abrupt end to the conversation. But unlike yesterday, Shira wouldn't allow it.

"Saber—"

He cut her off before she could get any further. "And even if I desired it, simply winning the Holy Grail would not guarantee that I would be able to stay here. I say this because I know there is no way that golden Servant obtained the Grail."

"...What?" was all Shira could think to say.

"At the end of the last War," Saber told her, "the Holy Grail was destroyed by the man who summoned me, Kiritsugu Emiya."

 _What?!_ Shira's jaw dropped. "Are you...are you saying that my dad—?"

"Yes," Saber answered blandly. "Ten years ago, the Master I made a contract with was none other than your father, Shira. At the end of the battle, we stood victorious, and the Holy Grail appeared. If everything had gone the way it should have, the War would have ended after Archer's defeat. However, Kiritsugu rejected the Holy Grail, and the town was engulfed in flames."

A cool edge had now seeped into his voice. "When the time came to obtain the Grail, your father used his last Command Seal to force me to destroy it. And since a Servant cannot exist in this world without the Holy Grail, I could not finish my battle with Archer, nor could I ask Kiritsugu why he had betrayed me."

Shira mutely listened to Saber's story, the shock beginning to wear off. In hindsight, though, she supposed it made some sense. Kiritsugu had been a magus, so the idea that he had once participated in a Holy Grail War wasn't too farfetched. But there was still something bothering her.

"Why haven't you said anything about this until now?"

"For two reasons," Saber said. "First of all, I initially did not believe my involvement in the previous Grail War was something that needed discussing. And secondly," he momentarily hesitated, "I could not bring myself to tell you what sort of Master Kiritsugu was."

"Why?" Shira asked.

"I have caught several glimpses of your past, Shira. When I saw him in your dreams, I could not believe how much Kiritsugu had changed. You remember him as a man who took you in and loved you when you lost everything, but I remember him as a stereotypical magus. He was interested only in his own objectives, and he killed anyone who stood in his way. He was not a heartless man," Saber quickly added upon seeing the stricken look on Shira's face, "but he suppressed all emotion and did whatever needed to be done to achieve his goals."

Saber paused, his expression darkening. "And yet, when he stood before the Holy Grail, the very thing that he—that _I_ —had been fighting for, he ordered me to destroy it. In that moment, I don't believe I had ever hated anyone more than your father."

 _I never knew any of this,_ Shira thought. She had never asked what Kiritsugu was like before he found her, and he certainly never saw fit to reveal much about his past to his adopted daughter. Really, to hear Saber tell it, there may as well have been two Kiritsugus: the father who raised her and the ruthless, coldblooded magus.

"Shira," the knight began after a moment of silence, "I might not have been able to get the Holy Grail in the last War, but I will this time. So please, do not try to talk me out of it."

* * *

Shira's conversation with Saber had only left her with questions. How was it that the Archer Servant from ten years ago was still around? What reason did Kiritsugu have to destroy the Grail? And what could she do to convince Saber that he was making a mistake, that he could stay and have his whole future ahead of him if he so chose?

It was late afternoon by the time Shira left home to go to Kotomine Church, going by foot rather than taking a bike. As much as she wanted some answers and understood that Kotomine, the supervisor of the Holy Grail War, was the most qualified to give them, talking to him again did not exactly appeal to her, so she wanted to hold it off for as long as she could.

An hour later, Shira had arrived at the church. She noticed that, unlike last time, the lights were on, so Kotomine must still be there. _Well, let's get this over with._

She walked over to the building and opened the heavy doors. Kotomine was standing at the opposite end of the chapel, and he acknowledged Shira's presence with a glance in her direction.

"Emiya," the priest greeted smoothly. "What brings you here?"

"I have to talk to you about something," Shira replied.

Kotomine barely nodded. "Very well, then; follow me. I'm sure this has to do with the Holy Grail War, and I cannot allow such a discussion here." He led Shira to a back door, and they walked through an elegant courtyard until they came to another door. Inside was a modest sitting room that faintly smelled of wine. A couch was against the far wall, with two armchairs on either side and a table in front. The only light came from candles placed on another, much smaller table.

Shira opted to remain standing as Kotomine took a seat on the couch.

"I would offer you something to drink, but I'm afraid I don't have anything," he said.

"I wasn't planning on staying long, anyway," Shira informed him, deciding to get straight to the point. "Saber told me that my dad was his Master in the last War and that the only reason he didn't make a wish on the Holy Grail is because Dad forced him to destroy it. You're the supervisor, so you must know all about it."

Kotomine raised an eyebrow. "You say that Saber told you this?"

"Yes, of course he did," Shira answered, not understanding why he'd ask her that. _Who else could've told me? Dad's picture?_

Kotomine stayed silent for a few minutes as if pondering something. "Servants typically do not remember Grail Wars they have previously been summoned in. The only memories they retain are from their human lives. If Saber remembers the fourth War, then he must be quite an abnormal Servant."

Well, that was interesting, Shira supposed, but that wasn't the quite the issue she wanted to talk about. "Saber really wants to obtain the Grail, but...if he gets his wish, he won't be able to stay here."

"You want your Saber to stay in this world?" Kotomine asked rhetorically. "Nothing could be simpler. All you have to do is have Saber drink from the Holy Grail."

Shira stared at him in confusion, prompting him to continue.

"The Holy Grail is very powerful. If a Servant drinks the contents of the Grail, they are granted a second life. They will retain the same form they had as a Servant, but they will be able to remain in the present world as long as their Master lives."

 _But,_ Shira thought, seeing the flaw in that scenario, _if a Servant is still a Servant, then they'd still need mana to maintain their physical form._ There was no guarantee that Saber would never run out of mana; therefore, there was no guarantee that he wouldn't just end up disappearing anyway. And what was more was that...

"Unfortunately," she said out loud, "a second life isn't what Saber wants."

"If that is the case, then there is one other option. You can use a Command Seal to force Saber to stay with you." Kotomine's mouth curled upward into a slight smirk. "No matter what happens then, you would get your wish."

Shira fought the urge to bristle at that. Did that priest honestly believe she'd stoop so low as to force Saber to stay against his will?

Kotomine got to his feet. "If that is all you wanted to discuss, then I suggest you head back home. This War is not over yet; going out for a stroll without Saber is just short of madness."

"Actually, there's something else," Shira said quickly as Kotomine headed to the door. "I thought you should know that there's now an eighth Servant."

The priest was about to open the door when he froze. "What?" He turned to face Shira, apparently shocked, and she proceeded to explain how the mystery Servant came out of nowhere and killed Caster and Kuzuki, as well as how, according to Saber, he had been summoned as an Archer in the last Grail War.

"...I see," Kotomine said after the explanation was over. "He must have maintained his mana levels by devouring human souls. That's the only way he could have survived. I will look into this Servant you spoke of. You, meanwhile, should focus on your remaining battles."

Shira nodded briefly. "Fine. I'll leave this in your hands, then." And with that, she allowed Kotomine to lead her out of the church.

* * *

Night had fallen by the time Shira started her way home. Thinking back on her conversation with Kotomine, she felt that the only thing she accomplished was letting him know about the golden Servant.

 _I don't want Saber to get the Grail, and yet, getting the Grail might be the only way he could stay,_ Shira thought as she reached the Fuyuki Bridge. But that was exactly the problem, wasn't it? Saber did not want to stay; he wanted to continue chasing after his wish to change the past.

_Doesn't he realize what a mistake that is? Yes, maybe his reign didn't turn out the way he wanted, but how does doing things over make anything better? And if Saber didn't become king, would he even still exist?_

Shira stopped short with a gasp at that thought. Saber...not existing? That wasn't a very welcoming prospect at all. If Saber never became king, that meant his legend as King Arthur would not exist. If his legend didn't exist, that meant Saber would never have been summoned as a Servant. If he was never summoned...

_I would never have met him._

The redhead found herself gripping the bridge's railing, her hands shaking. The idea of never knowing Saber...it hurt. It hurt worse than watching him struggle to continue his first fight against Berserker, worse than seeing him flushed and sweaty due to his dangerously low supply of mana, worse than discovering how his half sister broke him in the only way a rapist could.

But what hurt just as much was that, as far as Shira could tell, Saber would be gone once the Grail War was completed.

_"You can use a Command Seal to force Saber to stay with you."_

"I can't do that," Shira muttered out loud, silencing Kotomine's voice in her head. How could she live with herself if she did something like that to Saber? He hated her father because Kiritsugu had used a Command Seal to have him destroy the Holy Grail; if she did the same to make him stay whether he liked it or not, he would hate her, too.

She didn't want him to hate her, but at the same time, trying to imagine life without him was more than she could bear.

The world suddenly became blurry, and Shira realized that she was about to cry. She let go of the railing, wiping at her eyes before any tears could fall.

Why should someone she had only known for almost two weeks have such an effect on her? And when did such strong feelings towards her Servant begin? Was it when they agreed to fight as equals? Was it when she felt so helpless to save him from disappearing? Was it when she finally realized he wanted to redo the selection of the king?

No; no, it wasn't. Shira couldn't lie or deny it anymore, not to herself and not to the people around her. From that very first moment she'd seen Saber standing in the storage shed—calm, dignified, and so beautiful—he had stolen her heart before she could do anything to stop it.

 _I love Saber._ A lump formed in Shira's throat. _I love him. Oh, God, I love him!_

At the beginning of the Holy Grail War, she said all she wanted to do was save innocent people. Now, she wanted to save the boy—no, the man she had fallen in love with. She wanted him to find happiness in this era. She wanted him to live freely, without any worries about fighting or Holy Grails or what he thought was his duty to Britain.

But with the admittance of Shira's love for Saber came the reminder that she just might lose him forever.


	20. Temporary Dream

"So, did you go to see Kirei?" Rin asked Shira from the kitchen as the latter sat down at the dining room table.

"Yes," Shira answered, brief and to the point. She mumbled a thanks as Rin handed her a glass of hot tea.

"Well, let's not get too chatty or anything," the black-haired girl said dryly, taking a seat.

"There's nothing to talk about," Shira told her. "It's not like it was a really useful meeting or anything." She took a sip of tea, relishing the heat after being out in the cold for the last hour.

"You know, I'm surprised," Rin said, changing the subject. "I've always thought that Saber was the most powerful Servant that could be summoned, but he's actually just the Servant with the most issues."

Shira took another, deliberately slow sip. "I don't know." She stared at her drink, frowning. "Maybe it would've been better for Saber if he'd never become a Servant."

As much as the thought of never having known Saber distressed her, Shira could see how it would have been beneficial if he hadn't become a Servant. If Saber had never sought a way to change things, it would have meant that he'd had no regrets about his life, which could only be a good thing.

"Huh; interesting," Rin commented, staring at the redhead. "Maybe you and Archer could've gotten along. She said the very same thing."

"Did she, now?" Shira asked, wrinkling her nose at the thought of having anything in common with the cynical woman.

"Yes." Rin nodded. "Archer said that she regretted becoming a Servant, and she didn't want the same thing to happen to Saber. I think she must have had some kind of connection to him during their human lives."

"Maybe she was in love with him," Shira joked, but only halfheartedly; she found herself remembering the strangely sad look in Archer's eyes as she'd gazed at Saber that night at Ilya's castle and quickly sobered. "Seriously, though, if they did know each other, don't you think Saber would've recognized Archer?"

Rin shrugged. "Well, Saber _was_ a king. He can't be expected to remember every one of his subjects." She then went on to another topic. "So, Shira, what are you doing to do next? Have you given it any thought?"

"Actually, I have," Shira replied. She had toyed with this idea over and over in her head as she walked home. It was probably one of the craziest ideas she'd ever had, and she wasn't certain it'd be something Saber would readily agree to, but it would surely take their minds off the Grail War for at least a few hours.

"I plan to go on a date with Saber."

Shira expected Rin to laugh at what she'd said, or maybe scoff and tell her what a stupid idea it was. What she hadn't expected was for Rin to give an almost triumphant smirk.

"Well, it's about time," the older girl said. "The sexual tension between you two was getting on my nerves."

"Sexual tension?" Shira repeated, her eyes widening and her face suddenly flushing. "What are you talking about?"

Rin ignored her, her smirk broadening. "I was starting to think I'd have to lock you and Saber in a closet before you'd make a move on him."

Shira's face grew even hotter. "Really, Tohsaka, you make it sound like I want to seduce him." A date with Saber was one thing, but sleeping with him? He'd certainly never agree to _that_ , and she didn't think she was ready to have sex anyway.

"Hey, he's already seen you without clothes, so it should be easy to—"

"Shut up, will you?" Shira snapped, getting to her feet and hurrying to the door. "I'm going to bed."

"Shira, wait!" Rin exclaimed before she could leave the room. "I was just kidding!"

The redhead rolled her eyes as she went back to her seat, the heat in her face subsiding. "Well, excuse me for thinking it wasn't funny."

By now, Rin's smirk had faded. "Honestly, I like both you guys, so good luck on the date."

 _Amazing how she can go from making fun of me to being serious at the drop of a hat,_ Shira mused. Out loud, she said, "Uh, thanks. I hope things work out, too."

* * *

Shira went to bed that night with her mind full of thoughts of what she and Saber could do on their date. Unfortunately, even after about an hour of thinking before drifting off to sleep, she hadn't been able to come up with any real plan for how they would spend the day; the fact that she had never been on a date in her life doubtlessly contributed to that. And of course, there was the issue of whether or not Saber would be willing to go out with her. Assuming he agreed to a date, would it be because he loved her, too...or would he just go along with it simply because she was his Master?

The next morning, Shira woke up groggily, slowly sitting up in her futon and rubbing her sleep-filled eyes. She tried to remember the dream she'd had. It had been a good one, surprisingly enough; Saber had been in it, as usual, but he had looked happier than she'd ever seen him. Shira frowned, trying to remember why her Servant had been so happy in the dream. There had been a field or a meadow of some sort, she knew that...and had there been someone else? She couldn't recall; trying to remember the dream was getting harder the more awake she became.

 _Well, I guess it can't be too important if I've already forgotten most of it,_ Shira thought, deciding to put the dream aside for now. She could worry about that later; right now, she had to worry about Saber's reaction once she informed him about wanting to go on a date.

She got dressed in her usual shirt and skirt (she didn't own any clothes that were especially formal, so she had to make do with hoping her normal attire didn't have too many wrinkles), then went to the bathroom to freshen up, taking care to wash her face and brush her teeth and hair to perfection. If she was going to go out with Saber today, she might as well make sure she at least looked decent.

It was only after breakfast had been eaten that Shira finally broached the topic to her Servant.

"A date?" Saber frowned slightly as he and Shira sat facing each other at the dining room table, Rin watching from the other side. "What does that term mean? I'm sorry, but I still don't understand all these modern acronyms."

"A date isn't an acronym," Shira said patiently. "It's when a guy and a girl go out and spend some time together."

This seemed to only confuse Saber. "But we already spend our time together."

"Most of it is spent on the War, though," Shira pointed out. "I was just thinking that we could take a break from everything and have some time for ourselves."

Saber paused, his brow furrowing a little in thought. "So, a date would be a social event?"

Shira nodded. "Yes, it would."

"And you want me to partake in this with you?"

"Well...yes?" She hated how unsure she sounded, but was willing to blame it on nerves. _What if Saber says no...?_

The blond paused again. "I believe I understand the meaning of your words, but not the intent behind them. What is motivating you to do this, Shira?"

The redhead's throat went dry. She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it just as quickly. The answer to the question was perfectly simple, and yet, it didn't seem right to bluntly tell Saber that she loved him.

At last, Rin huffed impatiently, drawing both Shira and Saber's attention. "Well, since it looks like Shira's terrible at explaining things, I guess it's up to me." She stood up, looking at the knight. "Listen, Saber, a date is a romantic rendezvous between two people who like each other."

"Tohsaka!" Shira glared at her, but the effect was ruined by the heat creeping to her cheeks.

Even so, Saber finally understood what his Master was asking, and his face was surely turning red as well. From what Rin had just said, a date was essentially a modern courting ritual. _Shira...wants to court me?_ His heart involuntarily skipped a few beats at the thought—but no; no, he must have heard wrong. As Shira said, she wanted a break from all the fighting, that was all there was to it.

At least, that was what Saber told himself.

Presently, Shira turned back to him, her blush fading slightly.

"Um, so...yeah," she said a bit awkwardly. "There's not supposed to be any battles during the day, so it'll be safe for us to go into town or something. I mean, if you want to, that is," she added hurriedly.

"I...suppose there would be no harm in it," Saber answered hesitantly. "But I can't see any benefit for you in doing this. As you mentioned earlier, it has nothing to do with the Grail War."

"That's the whole idea," Shira told him, relieved that he seemed willing. "We don't have to spend every moment of every day fighting, you know."

Saber pressed his lips together, trying to ignore his still erratic heartbeat. "Very well, Shira," he said, his voice surprisingly steady to his ears. "If you are going into town today, then as your Servant, I cannot allow you to be by yourself."

 _I am only accompanying her to protect her,_ Saber thought. _And she merely wants a respite, nothing more. Nothing more._

Shira's face briefly fell at the apparent fact that Saber was looking at their date with a businesslike eye. He pretended not to notice.

* * *

Less than half an hour later, Shira and Saber were entering a city bus and going to the back to sit down. Aside from the driver, there were only a few other passengers, so it wasn't as noisy as a bus would normally be. Shira didn't know whether to feel unnerved by the silence or not.

Soon enough, the bus was moving, and since no discussion topics were coming to Shira's mind, she allowed herself to gaze at Saber, who was staring out the window. The morning sun bathed him in its light, illuminating him as brightly as it had the first time she had seen him in the dojo. Shira's heart pounded against her ribcage as she realized once again just how beautiful Saber was—how his hair looked like it was spun from pure gold, how his blue-green eyes shone like turquoise, and how his skin was as pale and clear as porcelain.

But it wasn't just her Servant's good looks that she'd taken notice of. A faint reflection of Saber could be seen in the window, so Shira could see that his eyes were widened slightly in almost childlike wonder as he watched the rapidly passing scenery. She couldn't say she was surprised by his evident fascination; in his time, the fastest mode of transportation would have been a horse or maybe a carriage, and neither of them could compare with the speed of a modern vehicle.

 _Come to think of it,_ Shira thought suddenly, _Saber has never really seen Fuyuki City, has he?_ Sure, they'd walked around town while trying to track down Shinji and Rider, but both of them had been far too focused on their objective to do something as normal as taking in their surroundings. Today, however, was supposed to be a date, a day where they could be free from their worries and simply have fun in each other's company. As such, Shira would show Saber the sights of the city; she would take him places that he never had the chance to see. She hoped that, just for this one day, he would forget his role as a Servant.

The first place Shira and Saber ended up visiting once they reached town was the aquarium. They rode on an escalator, watching many sea creatures swim above and around them in large tanks. Shira sneaked a glance at Saber to see his reaction. Although he was taking care to keep his face blank, he could not completely disguise his awe.

"This is so unnatural," Saber said in a hushed voice. "These fish used to have the freedom to swim wherever they wished, and now they can only swim in these elaborate cages."

Shira was beginning to wonder if going to the aquarium had been a good idea. She was about to ask if Saber wanted to leave, but he continued speaking, his tone laced with warmth.

"And yet, it's so compelling. I cannot stop looking no matter what I do."

"It is beautiful, isn't it?" Shira agreed with a smile. The aquarium was dimly lit, giving the fish tanks a blue, unearthly glow. "I guess this would be your first time seeing fish this close?"

"Yes," Saber answered. "Life under the sea was not a priority of mine during my reign. For me, the ocean only brought invaders that needed to be defeated."

After leaving the aquarium, the next couple of hours were spent at the movie theater. The only movie that hadn't been sold out was a high fantasy film. Shira found her mind wandering as she and Saber sat in the dark theater while the movie played. Her impression of what they were watching was that it was mediocre at best and ridiculously cheesy at worst, and she could only imagine the thoughts going through Saber's head.

Shira tore her eyes away from the movie screen to see a couple sitting a few rows in front of where she and Saber were. The redhead took note of how the guy had his arm draped over the girl's shoulders and glanced at Saber's hand, which was laying on the armrest of his chair. Shira quickly decided that putting an arm around him was probably too forward, but holding hands wouldn't be so bad, right?

She lifted her hand to place it on Saber's, but his hand moved before Shira could touch it. When she looked up, she saw that both of Saber's hands were raised in front of his face and curled into fists. He started mimicking the onscreen swordplay, a criticizing expression darkening his features. If it weren't for the rule about no talking in a movie theater, Shira was sure that Saber would be voicing everything he found wrong with the battle scene.

And her hand was still in midair, completely unnoticed. She quickly set it back down, feeling rather awkward.

It was mid-afternoon by the time Shira and Saber decided to have lunch. The restaurant they wound up in was Western-styled and incredibly fancy. The table they got was large enough to seat six people, with a linen tablecloth covering it and a single red rose placed at the left end.

"I almost never eat in restaurants like this," Shira admitted after her and Saber's drinks arrived. "The food might be really good, but it's almost like you're not allowed to eat it the 'wrong' way, you know? It's like if you eat too fast or too loud, everyone stares at you like you're some kind of barbarian."

A small, amused smile came to Saber's face, and Shira felt her heart give a thrill. "Such etiquette in extravagant settings can be quite rigid," he said. "I find the atmosphere during mealtimes at your house is much more relaxed."

 _More like chaotic, I'd say,_ Shira thought wryly.

Saber took a long sip of his drink. "This tea is very delicious. You should have ordered it, Shira; I think you would like it."

Shira fought against the urge to chuckle. _Of course he'd think English tea is the best; talk about national pride._

"Well, it certainly smells nice," she said out loud. "If you want, I can buy that instead of getting instant teabags."

"No, don't." Saber shook his head. "The teabags you use have the advantage of being inexpensive and easy to prepare."

He took another sip of tea, and Shira fell silent, enjoying this less tense side of her Servant.

* * *

They ended up taking a walk through town after lunch, Shira giving an impromptu tour as they went. Saber generally stayed quiet, only nodding on occasion and allowing the redhead to talk about the places they passed. The sun was about to set by the time the pair found themselves at the Fuyuki Bridge.

Saber suddenly stopped walking, his breath hitching in his throat as he stared out at the river. Shira stopped as well, and she saw that he was looking at the floating debris that remained from an old ship.

"Supposedly, that ship sank a long time ago," Shira said. "I'm not sure why, though."

"I do," Saber told her, sounding melancholy. "I was forced into a battle on the water and I had to use my Noble Phantasm to win. However, the ship was caught in the blast."

Shira spared the knight a quick, astonished glance. "Seriously? You were the one who sunk it?"

Saber nodded. "But by a stroke of luck," he added quickly, "there was no one onboard. Granted, I could have checked to make sure beforehand, but by the time I took notice of the ship, Excalibur's power had already been unleashed."

A moment of silence passed, and Shira pursed her lips in thought.

"Please try not to get too angry over this," Saber said, misinterpreting her expression. "I regret it as well."

"I'm not mad," she assured him. "I was just thinking that there's more evidence of the last Grail War than I thought. I'm actually kind of surprised that no one's tried to do something like get the ship out of the river or rebuild the burned down suburb. It seems like the reasonable thing to do."

The only response Shira got from Saber was a noncommittal hum. Another moment of silence passed as the pair watched the sun slowly go down in the west. At last, Shira turned to Saber and asked the question that had lingered in the back of her mind ever since the date began.

"Did you have fun today, Saber?"

"I did," the blond answered, his voice sincere. "I must confess that I have never done anything quite like this before, so it was a very refreshing experience."

"Really? Not even with—" Shira suddenly cut herself off, realizing that her next question was considered taboo in the dating world. After only a few seconds of thought, she decided to ask it anyway. "Not even with your wife?"

"You mean Guinevere?" Saber's mouth set into a thin line, his expression unreadable. "No; not even with her. The first time we met was on our wedding day, so there was no courting period."

"Oh." Shira paused, hesitating. "Did you love her?"

"Love had nothing to do with our marriage," Saber replied tonelessly. "In my time, royalty and nobility used marriage as a political tool. I was arranged to marry Guinevere to secure an alliance with her father. We may not have loved each other the way a husband and wife ought to, but we knew our duty."

"Well, it seems to me Guinevere didn't care that much about duty," Shira remarked sourly, "since she cheated on you with Lancelot."

Saber's voice became quieter. "In truth, I never blamed her for the affair. She was unhappy being married to someone who could not give her what she wanted." His smile was bitter. "Just another failure of mine."

The more Saber spoke, the more Shira's annoyance rose. Why did he always do this? Blame himself for other peoples' actions?

"I swear, you have the biggest guilt complex ever," Shira said before she could stop herself.

"Excuse me?" Saber's eyes were now narrowed as he looked at her.

"You're doing the same thing you did when I found out about Morgan: you're talking as if what happened was your fault when it wasn't."

"How could I not be the one to blame?"

"You're not a clairvoyant," Shira pointed out, her frustration leaking into her voice. "How were you supposed to know how things turned out? You can't hold yourself responsible for events that you had no control over."

"A king must always be in control of any situation," Saber snapped, "and I lost that control the night Morgan used me as her plaything. My country fell because I was too weak to fight off a sorceress, and obtaining the Holy Grail is the only thing I can do to set things right."

"Damn it, Saber!" Shira exploded, the second half of the last sentence her Servant spoke hitting her particularly hard. "Are you that desperate for the Holy Grail? How can you be so sure that everything will be better if someone else becomes king? It might turn out exactly the same, or it might even be worse!"

"That's impossible," Saber insisted.

Shira continued as if he hadn't said anything. "You keep saying that you want to redo the past, but you refuse to think about the future. Saber, don't use the Grail to try to please fair-weather people. You have the chance to live for yourself, so do it. If you wanted to, you could have a life here." Her voice lowered to almost a whisper. "You could be happy here."

She was bursting to say that he could be happy with her. If there was any time for her to reveal her feelings for him, now would be it. But the words seemed somehow stuck in her throat, and all she could do was wait for Saber's response.

The wait wasn't a long one.

"Shira, when we formed our contract, I swore to obey you as your Servant, nothing more." Saber's voice had become cold. "I have a duty I must fulfill no matter what. From the moment I drew forth Caliburn from its stone, my only wish was to carry out my oath as the King."

"So instead of accepting that sometimes bad things happen, you want a do-over?" Shira demanded acidly. "That sounds a lot like running away from your problems to me."

Saber glared at her. "You believe you are any better? Tell me, Shira, just how many nights have you relived that fire? Your father's death?"

How dare he! "Last time I checked, we were talking about you."

"And I suggest you take a long look in a mirror. How can you want me to think of myself when you are completely incapable of doing the same?"

"I'm not the one trying to erase myself from history!"

"No, you're merely a hapless child who does not value her own life."

Shira grinded her teeth, unable to formulate a comeback.

"If you want to," Saber said coolly, "we can easily break our contract. I will gladly defeat the remaining Servants and win the Holy Grail without you."

"What?!" the redhead exclaimed, finally finding her voice. "You'd actually do that?"

"Of course." The stoniness of the knight's expression was worse than any smirk. "My only objective is the Grail. Everything else is superfluous. You are no different in that regard."

Shira's eyes were suddenly burning, but now wasn't the time to show weakness.

"Why are you so stubborn?!" she yelled furiously. "You want to win that badly, fine—go fight them yourself!"

And with that, Shira turned around and ran, blinking rapidly and forcing down any sobs that wanted to escape.

* * *

The only sound that filled Shira's ears was her feet slapping the stone pavement as she ran all the way home. Good; maybe if she ran hard enough, all of the emotions whirling inside her would be burned out.

She burst into the Emiya estate, hurried to her room, and flung herself onto her futon, grasping her pillow with both hands as if it were a lifeline. Her breath came out in pants, her mind filled with nothing but the argument she had with Saber on the bridge. She was frustrated that he refused to even consider anything she told him. She was hurt that he had pretty much said everything that wasn't the Grail—including her—was unnecessary.

But most of all, she was angry—not with Saber, but with herself. She could urge him to find happiness for himself until she was blue in the face, and she would get nowhere. The one person she wanted to save from the bottom of her heart, and she could do nothing to save him, nothing at all.

And yet, Shira knew she couldn't give up, couldn't bring herself to let Saber go. He was the man she had fought with, bled with, fallen in love with. How could she let him leave so easily, just let him disappear from her life as though he had never existed?

 _Oh, Saber,_ she thought, _I can't get rid of you even if I wanted to._

She must have dozed off at some point, because the next thing Shira knew, her door was opening, revealing Rin standing in the hallway.

"Do you know where Saber is?" Rin asked without any preamble.

"Hello to you, too, Tohsaka," Shira said sarcastically as she sat up. "And try the dojo if you want to find Saber."

Rin frowned at the redhead's curt tone, but made no comment on it. "He's not in the dojo. I can't find him anywhere."

"You can't?" Dread coiled in Shira's stomach as all irritability was forgotten. "Are you saying he didn't come home?"

She sprang to her feet, ignoring Rin calling out her name as she took off running again. She rushed out of the estate and onto the streets, hurrying in the direction of the Fuyuki Bridge and desperately hoping Saber was still there.

 _Please don't tell me he's actually gone to fight the other Servants on his own,_ Shira thought as she was forced to temporarily stop at a street corner to catch her breath. _Saber just said that in the heat of the argument; he couldn't have been serious, he couldn't._

When she finally reached the bridge, she could have fainted with relief. There Saber was, still standing in the same spot, clutching the railing and staring out into the night. As Shira got closer, she could see that he did not look angry anymore, just morose. Her heart sank at the fact that she was the cause of it.

"You're gonna catch a cold at this rate," Shira commented as she walked over to Saber.

"Shira." The blond turned towards her, his voice soft.

"Tohsaka was looking for you. She got pretty worried when you didn't come home." Shira paused. "I was worried, too."

"My apologies, but you had no reason to worry." Saber shifted his gaze to his feet. "I wanted to leave, but I did not know where to go. You told me to do whatever I wished, so I thought I would. But now that I have that freedom, I have no idea what I want to do." He shook his head, sighing. "So I stayed, unable to decide where I should go."

"What do you mean, you don't know where to go?" Shira cut in, causing Saber to look at her again, startled. "You already have a place where you belong—my house."

Saber stayed quiet for a moment. "I feared that perhaps you would not want to see me so soon after our..."

His voice trailed off, but Shira got the message loud and clear: he hadn't wanted another round of their fight. She stepped closer to him, taking his arm.

"Let's go home," she said. "Servant or not, you can't stay out here all night. I'll make us some soup or something when we get back."

Was that a blush she saw on Saber's face? "Shira..."

"For the record, I still stand by what I said. Make your complaints now if you want to."

But Saber said nothing as they began the walk back to the estate. As they left the bridge and made their way through the empty city park, Shira took note that she had yet to let go of Saber. She had no real desire to do that, though; walking side by side with him, holding him by the arm...at this moment, it felt like they were a normal couple.

"Just where do you think you're going?"

And then the relatively peaceful moment was mercilessly shattered.

Shira and Saber both tensed at the sound of that unpleasantly familiar voice and slowly turned around, the former dropping her hand from the latter's arm. Several feet away, silhouetted by the light coming from the streetlamps, was the blond-haired man from two nights ago; although he was in civilian clothes instead of his golden armor, there was no mistaking him. He slowly stepped forward, his red eyes gleaming cruelly.

Saber instinctively pushed Shira behind him as though to shield her, and he met the eighth Servant's sneer with a glare.


	21. The Greatest Threat

The Archer Servant seemed amused by Saber's hostility.

"What's that look for, boy?" he asked rhetorically, his sneer never wavering. "We meet again, just as I promised, and you won't even show me the respect I deserve?"

Shira watched worriedly as Saber maintained his frosty silence. He wasn't thinking of fighting that Servant, was he? If he couldn't beat him ten years ago, what made him think he could now? _Saber will only die if he goes up against him!_

"Shira," the knight began, "I want you out of here."

"What?"

"I will do everything I can to—"

"No!" Shira cried before Saber could finish, pushing him aside. "You leave, not me!"

The redhead took off running towards the eighth Servant, a plan to project Caliburn hastily forming in her mind. She heard Saber shouting out her name, and she had almost closed the distance between her and the unknown Servant when he suddenly snapped his fingers—

And Shira froze where she stood, blood spewing forth from a gash that had just appeared on her stomach. She stared numbly at the red liquid staining her shirt, too stunned to feel any pain, and collapsed unceremoniously to the hard ground.

"So, this is your Master, Saber?" The Servant roved his gaze over Shira's bloodied, fallen body; Saber saw the predatory glint in those crimson eyes and his fury grew. "And here I thought you had gotten yourself a whore."

In a flash, Saber had transitioned to his armor. "Don't talk about her like that!" He charged forward and leapt into the air with Excalibur raised over his head, determined to slice the arrogant Servant to pieces. Just when Saber was in striking distance— _clang_!

A sword had suddenly appeared in front of the other man's face, effectively blocking Saber's attack. The knight jumped backward and landed on his feet, right in front of where Shira was lying.

"I'm guessing from your behavior," the eighth Servant said as the sword floating in midair disappeared, "that you still don't intend to bow before me."

"The very thought is ludicrous!" Saber snapped. With a battle cry, he raced forward again, Excalibur glowing with mana. But with each attack he delivered, no matter where he tried to strike, a sword would always appear to parry his blows. And during all this, the unknown Servant simply stood there, making no offensive move.

Soon enough, Saber was back on the ground in front of Shira, grunting in frustration.

His opponent let out a short bark of laughter. "Well, if you're going to insist on a fight, then allow me to show you more of my swords."

And with that, the shirt, pants, and fur-trimmed coat the other man was wearing were quickly replaced by his golden armor. Saber tightened his grip on Excalibur, while the Archer Servant smirked haughtily.

"Gate of Babylon."

Shira was pulled out of her stupor in time to see a red streak of light just behind the Servant shoot into the sky. The light grew larger and larger as if it were double doors opening; in seconds, it had become like a wall, the bright red color changing to orange, then yellow.

A small sword appeared in the unknown Servant's hand. He lifted it horizontally and swung it in Saber's direction, sending out shards of ice. Immediately, the knight lifted Excalibur to protect his face, a few pieces of ice colliding with the blade. Barely a second later, the golden Servant had a huge sickle in hand. The sickle was thrown at Saber, directly at his neck. He lifted his gauntleted hand to block it—and took a sharp intake of breath as the sickle went straight through his arm.

"Sa...ber," Shira managed to gasp out, ignoring her still throbbing wound as she looked at his injury. Blood was seeping onto both Saber's gantlet and the sickle. The enemy Servant jerked the sickle's chain, pulling the weapon out of Saber's arm and sending it back into the Gate of Babylon.

Saber sank to his knees, panting and using Excalibur as a crutch. "How did you..." _Pierce through my armor?_ was what he wanted to ask, but he didn't have the strength to finish.

The golden Servant did not even answer. Instead, the Gate became orange and shimmered. Slowly, the hilts of many swords appeared, not just ten or twenty, but a countless amount—and, as far as Shira could tell, all were undoubtedly Noble Phantasms. She vividly recalled how the unknown Servant had skewered both Caster and Kuzuki to death and would have screamed at Saber to run if she'd had the energy.

"Just who are you?" Saber asked, staring at all of the weapons floating from the Gate. "No one Epic Spirit can possess that many Noble Phantasms."

"I wouldn't be so quick to assume, Saber," the other man said with a smirk. "In the beginning of history, the world was once united as one, and all of its treasures were bestowed upon a single king."

"When the world was once united..." Saber repeated, then his eyes suddenly widened in realization. "You can't possibly be—!"

"I am," the Servant said smugly. "My true identity is none other than history's oldest king. I am Ancient Uruk's King of Heroes, Gilgamesh!"

 _The King...of Heroes...?_ The thought came to Shira's mind sluggishly, and even slightly turning her head in the enemy's direction took some effort.

"Accept your fate, Saber," Gilgamesh declared. "You've finally found a Servant that even you are no match for."

At this point, Saber had gotten to his feet with renewed determination. "Well, unless we try," he retorted, Excalibur swirling with mana, "we won't know that for sure, now, will we?"

Gilgamesh was unfazed. "Fine." He reached into the Gate of Babylon as all the Noble Phantasms disappeared from view. "I'll choose a weapon I think is appropriate for this fight." In his hand was a sword with a cylindrical, spiral-shaped blade like a drill, divided into three parts. "I'll face you with a sword that can only be wielded," he lifted the sword up over his shoulder, "by a king."

And with those words, the three components of the sword turned in three different directions. Powerful gusts of wind picked up as Gilgamesh's weapon swirled with mana. In seconds, the air was so thick with magical energy that Shira could almost taste it.

"Run, Saber!" she shouted at last, struggling to be heard over the windstorm. "Get out of here!"

But Saber remained undaunted, Excalibur now glowing. He charged forward towards Gilgamesh. "EX—"

"ENUMA—"

"—CALIBUR!"

"—ELISH!"

The two Servants had activated their Noble Phantasms at the same time. Saber's golden light clashed with Gilgamesh's red light, the windstorm becoming more powerful. For a few seconds, both attacks seemed to be on equal footing, and Saber gritted his teeth in the attempt to overpower Gilgamesh. But the golden-armored king suddenly smirked, and the red light intensified, greedily consuming the light of Excalibur. Saber only had time for a shocked gasp before the light engulfed him and a thunderous crash was heard.

Just like that, the fight was over. The light faded, the wind died, and a gash had been ripped from the brick road where Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasm had struck.

Shira lifted her head from the ground and turned to her left, her heart nearly stopping at the sight of Saber lying on his side in a pool of blood— _his_ blood. His normally sharp blue-green eyes were lifeless and cloudy, his mouth trickled with blood, and Excalibur was lying off to the side, having been knocked out of his hands.

Gilgamesh laughed from where he stood. "That sword was supposed to be the greatest sword in history, and it couldn't even go one round with Ea. On the other hand," he added mockingly, "perhaps I should have gone easy on him. After all, my opponents _are_ just a child and a virgin."

"Saber!" Shira ignored Gilgamesh as he continued to laugh himself sick. "Saber! Can you see?" She tried to crawl over to the knight, but stopped almost immediately, hissing in pain.

"Shira...?" Saber's voice was hardly above a whisper as he blindly groped for Excalibur. "You are...still here?" His hand made contact with his sword's hilt as Gilgamesh's laughter finally subsided. "You have to go...Don't worry about me..."

Saber slowly got up, once again using Excalibur as a crutch as he began to stagger towards Gilgamesh. "I can still...fend him off," he said in between pained grunts.

"Saber, stop!" Shira protested; the scene was far too similar to that first battle with Berserker for her liking. "He'll kill you!"

"How gallant of you, Saber," Gilgamesh sneered, "but you are in no condition to continue this fight. If you're finished with your bravado, why not give me your answer regarding my proposition."

As wounded and weakened as he was, Saber still mustered up a defiant glare at his opponent, his voice becoming a little stronger. "You already know my answer—no. You wish to use me as you would any of the weapons you have stored in your vault. You would have me be enslaved to your will, and I assure you, I find death to be much more preferable than being subjugated to the authority of a despot."

The sneer on Gilgamesh's face disappeared, and his eyes narrowed coolly.

"Refusing your King's generous offer, Pendragon? Denying that you are my tool, my toy? I suppose I must punish a disobedient pet."

Saber could not suppress a shiver at these words, but his resolve was unshaken.

Shira, meanwhile, did not bother to hide her fear. "Gilgamesh, no!" she burst out, trying to stand up and only succeeding in getting on her knees. "Don't you dare hurt him again!"

Gilgamesh was still looking at Saber. "Don't worry; I won't be hurting you..." he now eyed Shira, "directly."

It was as though ice had suddenly filled the girl's body as the golden king stared at her, his terrible red gaze glittering maliciously and a sly grin crossing his lips. What else could he mean about not directly hurting Saber when he was wearing _that_ expression? It was like...like...

Like he was undressing her with his eyes.

"I think...this is a most fitting punishment, Saber," Gilgamesh stated. "Please, try not to get too excited while I deflower and violate your cute Master."

At that moment, Saber could have sworn he stopped breathing. The image was in his head for an instant, but it was an instant too long. He saw Shira, naked and helpless, with Gilgamesh on top of her, _inside of her_ , and she was screaming and sobbing in terror, begging— _pleading_ —for him to stop, but he wouldn't stop, he was heedless of her cries—

Blood started pounding in Saber's ears. What he felt towards himself and Kiritsugu was positively saintly compared to the pure, utter _loathing_ he now felt for Gilgamesh. And when he next spoke, his voice was calm—deadly calm.

"I will kill you if you touch her." He then turned slightly to face his Master. "Shira, run! _Now_! What he says is not a threat, it's a promise! You must escape!" He was aware of how desperate he sounded, and he couldn't bring himself to care.

"I won't leave you!" Shira cried, shoving the fact that Gilgamesh wanted to have his way with her from her mind—how could she even think about fleeing when that would mean abandoning Saber to be killed?—as she made another attempt to stand. She partially succeeded; she got to her feet, but doubled over almost immediately, her breath ragged.

"Do as I say! If Gilgamesh gets his hands on you—"

"Shut up!" Shira shrieked at once, interrupting Saber. "You don't get it, do you? I will never leave you behind—I can't!"

"And just why not?" Saber demanded. "Your _virginity_ has been threatened, and all you can worry about is—"

"It's because _I love you_ , you idiot!"

A few seconds of ringing silence passed, Saber's eyes widening in stunned disbelief. "Shira..."

The redhead straightened up as much as she dared. "Saber, I love you," she repeated, her voice softening. "That is something that will never change, not even if I valued my life above everything else. With that said," she switched her gaze to Gilgamesh, anger replacing her earlier fear, "I won't let this guy get what he wants."

Gilgamesh raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? You should feel _honored_ that the King of Heroes wants to ravish you."

Shira shot him a scorching glare. "Go to hell, you son of a bitch."

Said son of a bitch only smirked, lifting the sword he'd called Ea. "I see you want to be disciplined in the worst way." With those words, Ea started to spin again, mana swirling around the blade.

Shira held out her arm and shut her eyes tightly. "Trace, on."

Her circuits flipped on, roaring to life with mana. _Initiate projection._

Maybe projection magic wouldn't be enough to defeat Gilgamesh. Maybe Shira's efforts would all be for nothing and she would just end up dead or worse. But that didn't matter, _couldn't_ matter.

For Shira, all that mattered was protecting Saber; everything within her was centered on that single goal. As strong as her Servant was, she knew better than to think he was invincible. He once said he was her sword, but swords could be nicked, blunted, or even broken. And if anything could protect a sword from harm, it could only be—

Shira's eyes snapped opened as a brilliant golden light shot towards the sky. She heard Gilgamesh draw a sharp intake of breath, and the light faded to reveal a glowing golden— _scabbard_?—floating in front of her.

"Shira!"

Before the redhead could think too much about what she had just projected, Saber was hurrying over to her, holding out Excalibur, the blade pointing downward. "Take it," was the only thing he said.

Shira gave Saber a questioning glance, and he answered with a quick nod. Wordlessly, she also grasped Excalibur's hilt and lifted her gaze to the red light surrounding Ea.

"That won't help you!" Gilgamesh bellowed, at last releasing Ea's power.

Saber and Shira's only response was to raise Excalibur and, with great battle cries, slide it into the scabbard. The red light crashed against the glowing protection of Excalibur and was deflected straight back at Gilgamesh, whose eyes widened in what might have been astonishment. He attempted to use Ea as a shield, but yelps of pain could be heard as his own attack was inflicted on him.

The red light faded, a second gash now ripped into the brick road. For a couple of seconds, Gilgamesh stood with his jaw clenched, steam hissing as it rose from his body, then he vanished into spirit form. Almost instantly, Excalibur and the scabbard disappeared, along with Saber's armor, leaving him back in his civilian clothes.

Shira's vision swam as the mana in her body faded, the pain in her stomach returning in full force and her legs nearly buckling under her weight. She heard Saber call out her name and felt his arms encircle her before she could fall.

"Sa...Saber..." Shira leaned against him heavily. A few seconds of silence passed as she let herself enjoy the feel of Saber's arms around her.

"I finally figured it out," he said, his voice warm and almost breathless. "All this time...you had Avalon, Shira."

The world was fading; Shira didn't even have the energy to wonder what Saber was talking about. Her last thought before she passed out was wishing she had enough strength to return his embrace.

* * *

_Britain was in civil war._

_The knight Mordred led a revolt against the King while Arthur was away on an expedition. When Arthur returned to Camelot to find that many of his own men had turned against him, there was no choice but to fight and kill them. The sheer irony was not lost on him: these knights once pledged their loyalty to him, and now he and the men still faithful to him shed their blood just as easily as they would with any other enemy._

_The fight would eventually become known as the Battle of Camlann. Casualties were high on both sides, and very few knights survived. By the end, Arthur and Mordred were fighting in single combat, the battleground covered with the bodies of the dead._

_The sound of clanging metal filled the air as the two blades crossed each other._

_"Why did you refuse to pass the throne to me?" Mordred demanded furiously. "You would name Sir Gawain as your heir, but not me?! I'm your son!"_

_Arthur's veins flooded with ice at those last three words. Yes, it was true that Mordred had his blood...his blood and Morgan's. The boy had been conceived during the night Arthur so desperately wanted to block from his mind. But Mordred's very presence would not let him forget. Images of being bound by his half sister's magic, of her forcing herself on him and being unable to do anything about it appeared in his head, and his eyes narrowed in sudden rage as he leapt backward._

_"Don't_ ever _say that again!" Arthur snarled, his anger rising with every word. "You are no son of mine!" He charged forward. "_ I have no son _!"_

_Excalibur was swung, slicing Mordred from shoulder to hip. With a feral scream, Arthur proceeded to stab his enemy in the heart, killing him. But Mordred must have been under some spell cast by his mother; his sword swung even after he died and stabbed Arthur fully in the stomach._

_Pain erupted from the King's wound; he no longer had Excalibur's scabbard, so this was an injury that would not heal automatically. Arthur slumped to his knees, and as darkness claimed him, he wondered if his death was very near at hand._

_When he regained consciousness, he found himself lying beneath a tree in a forest, Sir Bedivere standing before him, and he knew that he would shortly die from his grievous wound. After ordering his loyal knight to throw Excalibur into the lake, Arthur was left to drown in his regrets and lament his failures. All he had wanted was to save his country; instead, he had allowed it to plunge into ruin._

_The thought that he never should have become king filled him, consumed him. And at that moment, on the verge of death, Arthur Pendragon made a deal with the world: he offered his services as a Counter Guardian in exchange for the chance to have his wish to redo the selection of the king fulfilled._

_The appeal was made, the deal was accepted, and the contract was established._

* * *

"I am glad to see you have come to, Shira," Saber said after walking into his Master's room to see her sitting up in her futon, evidently recovered from the injury she sustained last night.

Shira gave a start as if shaken from thought. "Oh, hey. How long have I been asleep?"

"For about a day," Saber replied, sitting by her bedside. "I carried you home after you fell unconscious. Your wound was able to heal almost completely, so you should be at full strength soon."

"Good." Shira looked down and pulled the covers away from her, examining her clean shirt and skirt. _Did Saber change my clothes?_ She felt herself flush at the idea, but decided that there was a more important question she should be asking. "But what about you? Are you okay?"

"My injuries will not pose a problem," Saber replied calmly.

The redhead nodded, but soon a frown came to her face. "So, about Gilgamesh..."

Saber's mouth set into a grim line. "I'm afraid we have not seen the last of him."

"We'll have to face him again, won't we?" Shira proceeded to rub her hand up and down her upper arm as though to ward off a chill, her frown deepening in worry.

The blond found himself sorely tempted to hold her just as he had last night, if only to make that anxious look on her face go away. Anger flared within him as he was reminded of what their current enemy intended to do to Shira. An image of the arrogant king staring hungrily at her flashed in Saber's mind, taunting him, daring him to interfere.

 _You dog, Gilgamesh,_ he thought viciously. _I swear by Britain itself, I will gut you if it's the last thing I do._

Out loud, however, Saber said impassively, "It will not be easy, but our only choice is to defeat him if we are to acquire the Holy Grail."

Shira stared at him, her brows furrowing. Sensing that she was about to begin the same argument they'd had on the bridge, Saber decided to change the subject.

"I suggest you have dinner now that you are feeling better." He stood up and walked to the door.

"Saber."

He turned around again. "Yes, what is—Shira?!"

To his amazement, Shira had gotten to her feet, hurried over to him, and threw her arms around him, hugging him for dear life. Saber, too surprised to even return the gesture, felt his face heat up at the sensation of having her warm body pressed against his.

He swallowed, his throat having gone dry. "Shira," he repeated, "w-what are you...?"

"Saber, please listen to me," Shira said in a slightly trembling voice, her face in his shoulder. "You don't have to redo the selection of the king. You fought for your people to the very end, and you never once broke your vow. What you've done is more than enough. If we get the Grail, I want you stay and find what makes _you_ happy. I want you to stay here..." she tightened her grip, "with me."

Saber remained silent for several seconds. He did not push Shira away from him, but neither did he move to embrace her. The last sentence she spoke forced him to remember something he could no longer deny, something he had buried in the back of his mind for the last twenty-four hours—those three words she had screamed at him during their encounter with Gilgamesh.

 _I love you_.

This girl said she loved him, and as far as he could tell, she was being absolutely sincere. But _why_?

"You know I cannot do that," Saber finally said quietly. "You have seen my memories; you know what lies in my past. After seeing that, how can you expect me to not want to change things?"

Shira pulled back a little, her hands now settling themselves on his chest. "I'm sorry, but I fell in love with you. What am I supposed to do, just let you leave when this is all over?"

Saber looked down, unable to hold the redhead's gaze. There were so many reasons why she shouldn't love him. He was a Servant whose sole purpose was to fight, then disappear after either getting killed or winning the Grail. He was a monarch who had always chosen duty above everything else. He was someone who had become so good at suppressing emotion during his reign that his people accused him of being heartless. He was someone who could not defend himself from the woman who raped him and whose wife was so miserable being married to him that she sought comfort in another man's arms.

What on Earth did Shira see in Saber that she loved so much?

She went on when he didn't say anything. "You could have your whole life ahead of you if you so chose. Please, Arthur..."

Saber's breath hitched in his throat, his head jerking up to stare into Shira's pleading brown eyes. This was the very first time she called him by his true name. He bit his lower lip, suddenly noticing how her face was only inches from his.

"Shira," he began, "you know what I must do. And I know that you could find someone...closer to home."

"I don't want someone closer to home." Her voice lowered to a whisper. "I want you."

They continued looking at each other, Saber wide-eyed and robbed of speech, Shira giving a small, genuinely warm smile. And before he could think of anything to say, she closed what little distance there was between them and kissed him.

There was nothing forceful or demanding about her kiss, only a light pressure on his mouth. Her lips were soft and gentle, allowing him the opportunity to back away if he wanted to. But Saber couldn't back away.

He fought in battles with the odds stacked against him without flinching. He went up against opponents much more powerful than him with his determination unwavering. He continued to fight even when sustaining injuries, even when people told him not to. And yet, this simple kiss shook him like nothing else did. It wasn't just because it was a kiss—it was _who_ was kissing him.

This was the girl who treated him as a fellow human being instead of a weapon to be used and then discarded once an objective was completed. This was the girl who became so distressed over his wellbeing that she threw herself in the fray of battle in a fierce desire to protect him. This was the girl who so desperately urged him to reconsider his wish for the Grail, who declared her love for him and refused to run even with Gilgamesh threatening her maidenhead, who caused all the emotional armor he placed upon himself to crack without even trying.

She was idealistic to the point of naïveté. She was just as hardheaded and stubborn as he could be. She possessed a quiet beauty that made the loveliest British noblewoman look gaudy and artificial in comparison. A single touch from her was all it took for his heart to pound, for heat to rush to his face, and...and...

And he loved her.

Saber closed his eyes. _I love her._ Slowly, tentatively, he kissed Shira back. _I love her._ She took this as encouragement, pressing her lips more firmly to his. _I love her._ One of her hands moved to touch his hair, stroking it and causing him to shiver. _I love her!_

There was a part of him that wanted to wrap his arms around her and pull her as close to him as possible, wanted her to gasp against his lips, wanted her to call him by his real name again, wanted to just forget about everything and see what this kiss could lead to. The memory of accidentally walking in on her naked and the reaction his body had came to his mind in striking clarity; if that incident had temporarily awakened desires he thought were so contrary to his nature, then kissing her combined with the realization of his love for her only strengthened those desires.

But another part of him, the part not so overcome by emotion, knew what he had to do.

A small eternity seemed to pass before Shira ended the kiss and pulled away. Saber looked down at the floor for a moment, and when he looked up, his face was schooled into a mask of indifference.

"Perhaps you should have dinner now, Master." His voice was calm, as stoic as it ever was, as if the last few minutes or so had never happened.

Shira just blinked at him incredulously. "You mean we're not going to talk about it?"

"What is there to talk about?"

The redhead's jaw dropped. "But...but...I thought..."

Saber forced his voice to remain emotionless. "You thought what?"

Regardless of what they felt for each other, Saber knew he would disappear no matter how the Holy Grail War ended. What would happen to Shira once he was gone? If she loved him as much as she said she did, what would stop her from spiraling into depression? She would become a shell of herself, languishing over a man who left her behind.

In other words, instead of eventually breaking because of her ideals being shattered, Shira could break because of Saber.

He refused to let that happen. If he could make her hate him, make her believe that their kiss meant less than nothing to him, then she wouldn't miss him after his disappearance. She could forget about him, forget she ever loved him, and move on to a man who actually deserved her, who would never leave her.

Saber expected Shira to get angry, to yell and scream at him, to call him out on his blatant disregard for what they just did. Shira angry was so much easier to contend with, but the look on her face now wasn't anything close to anger, only confusion and hurt.

It was all he could do to keep his face blank when he saw tears at the corners of her eyes.

When she next spoke, her voice was impossibly small. "I...I'll get us something to eat, then."

Saber nodded coolly, and Shira walked past him and left her room, her head bowed and her shoulders slumped. After he knew she was out of hearing range, he allowed his act to drop, sighing heavily as pangs of guilt stung at him.

This was far from the first time he did not let any emotion cloud his judgment; it was the first time it had ever hurt like this.


	22. To the Church

Shira hardly paid attention to the miso soup she was making, her mind plagued with the last exchange she had with Saber. Whatever relationship beyond Master and Servant she had wanted to believe was forming between them was certainly damaged beyond repair now. And it was all because she couldn't keep her hormones to herself.

 _Why did I go and kiss him in the first place?_ she thought as she tended to the soup. When Rin kissed Saber that night in the ruins, he must have been thrown into a flashback, reliving his rape—Shira of all people should have known better. After all, hadn't she spent their entire date being careful to avoid overly physical affection?

On the other hand, though, Saber _had_ kissed her back, but how he'd reacted afterward wasn't exactly cause for rejoicing. Or rather, how he hadn't reacted. As he looked at her after the kiss, Shira had been reminded of the expression he'd worn during their first meeting: calm, cool, and all business. When Saber was summoned, she may have been utterly enchanted by him, but he'd only seen her as his Master.

And clearly, that was all she would be to him. What a fool she was to hope for anything more.

Dinner between Shira and Saber was very quiet. Neither of them made any attempt at conversation, or even made eye contact. They were sitting across from each other at the dining room table, but they might as well have been on opposite sides of the world. After dinner was eaten and the dishes were washed, the two went to their rooms without so much as a goodnight.

Early the next morning, Shira got dressed, groomed herself, and was out of the estate and on her way to Kotomine Church in less than thirty minutes. After two nights ago, there was no way Gilgamesh would not come after her and Saber again, and she didn't want to think about what would happen if they couldn't come up with a plan to defeat him. Hopefully, Kotomine would be able to help.

The sky was cloudy and downcast by the time Shira made it to the church, giving the building a gloomy, even foreboding look. Shivering slightly from the cold, she headed to the doors and opened them.

"Kotomine?" she called out, her voice echoing through the chapel. No one answered. Was the priest somewhere in the back? Shira walked to the back door he had used the last time she was here and went outside to the courtyard.

She looked around and took a few paces, trying to remember the route to Kotomine's sitting room, when she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks.

The courtyard looked just as beautiful as before, the surroundings just as peaceful. And yet, the hairs on the back of Shira's neck stood on end as though someone was about to jump at her at any second, and her stomach churned painfully with nausea.

Something...something was wrong here.

_Go._

Her heart clenched tightly in her chest.

_Go away._

Her face became clammy.

_Just turn around and go away!_

A burning sensation rose in her throat.

_Go home._

She stumbled forward, pressing a hand to her aching temple.

_There's no reason for you to be here!_

She spied a small, dark indent in the corner of the church's walls.

_Don't stop._

She walked to the indent, finding a staircase leading down.

_Turn around NOW!_

She headed down the stairs. Once she made it to flat ground, she felt stone beneath her feet. When her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw that the entire room was made of gray stone. Shira decided it must be an underground chapel, and a frequently used one at that, since there was no dust or mold covering the floor or walls. To her left was an entrance to another chamber, one that contained a horrible stench. She didn't bother to try to figure out what the smell could be as she peered inside.

She wished she had never looked.

Littered around the chamber were corpses—deformed, decomposing _corpses_. Every single one was gray-skinned, hairless, and wore no clothing. The bodies were so twisted that they couldn't remotely be called human. Various limbs had been hacked off and carelessly strewed about, leaving bloodstains on the floor. In the center of the chamber, coffins had been placed, coffins that were— _draining mana_?!

Shira's mouth opened in a silent scream. These corpses...they were still alive. They could not move, they could not speak, but somehow, they were still alive, helpless to prevent the coffins from leeching off of their very souls. And what was more was that...

They were all the size of _children_.

The redhead backed away, hoping to find a good place to vomit, when someone grabbed her arm from behind.

"Nice to see you again so soon, Shira Emiya," a deep baritone said cordially, the pleasant tone at odds with how tight the grip on her arm was.

 _Kotomine!_ "You! You did this?!" Shira cried out, whirling around to face the priest.

"This might be a church, Emiya," Kotomine informed her silkily, "but that doesn't mean you can go poking around in its dark corners."

She yanked her arm out of his grasp, taking a step backward. But before she could do anything else, a man dressed in blue—Lancer—appeared right in front of her, stabbing her in the chest with Gae Bolg.

Shira's body seized up, her breath coming out in pained gasps. Her vision blurred as she felt Lancer pull his spear from where he'd stabbed her, and she fell to the ground, blood quickly pooling around her.

* * *

When Saber woke up, Shira was nowhere to be found. He thought that perhaps she was making breakfast, but when he went into the kitchen, he saw that it was just as empty as her bedroom.

 _Most likely, she does not want to see me,_ the blond thought as he sat cross-legged on the porch, staring sightlessly at the cloudy sky. Of course she didn't; he had played his part to perfection last night. After his cold dismissal of their kiss, he had ignored her from the moment dinner was served to when they retired to their beds. Shira's avoidance of him should have been a relief, a sign that his plan was working, and yet...

The memory of Shira pressing her lips to Saber's replayed in his mind, and his face flushed with heat as he remembered wanting to deepen the kiss, wanting to taste more of her—but he quickly shook his head, ashamed for having such thoughts. He had pushed her away no more than twelve hours ago, and he still longed for her? How selfish could he be?

He told himself for what must have been the millionth time that getting Shira to hate him was the only way to spare her the pain of their inevitable separation. He was a Servant who vowed to protect his Master—no, more than that, he was a knight who wanted to protect his ladylove—and he would stay true to that promise no matter what the cost.

Even if it meant protecting her from himself.

"Saber, have you seen Shira?" Rin's voice ripped him from his brooding.

"Rin," Saber greeted as the black-haired girl walked up to him.

"I can't seem to find her anywhere," Rin continued. "I wanted to ask for her help since Ilya's fever is getting worse."

"Ilyasviel has not yet recovered?" Saber asked, getting up to follow Rin back into the estate.

"No; in fact, I think she's reaching her limit," Rin said somberly as they walked through the hall to the dining room. "As the Grail War goes on, Ilya's health will continue to weaken."

Saber frowned as he and Rin settled themselves around the dining room table. "What do you mean by limit?"

"Ilya's almost at maximum capacity. Once she reaches that point, she'll have to discard the functions she needs the least, like being human. She was designed in such a way that she'll continue to break down the longer the Grail War progresses."

The knight's lips parted slightly in shock, and Rin had the grace to look a little sheepish.

"No, it's okay," she hastened to add. "I'm actually making it sound far worse than it is." Rin then became serious again. "But there is something else we should discuss: Lancer's Master."

"You have determined who it is?" Saber questioned.

"I have," Rin confirmed. "I went to her hideout, but all I found were bloodstains and a left arm with the Command Seals ripped out of it. Obviously, someone killed Lancer's Master a long time ago."

"Does this mean that Lancer is dead as well?" Saber wondered out loud. "Perhaps another Servant killed him after he attacked Shira."

But Rin was shaking her head. "Can't be; the blood I found was older than that. My guess is that Lancer's Master was killed long before we met him, and if he's still around—"

"Whoever killed his Master must have stolen the Command Seals and formed a new contract with him," Saber finished. "But how can that be? The only ones who can transfer Command Seals are Masters and Servants. No matter how talented a magus is, he or she cannot become a Master by stealing Command Seals."

"Then let me ask you this," Rin said. "If the Holy Grail disappears, could someone remain a Master indefinitely as long as they still had both their Command Seals and their Servant?"

"I...suppose so," Saber admitted. "In that case, the magus who killed Lancer's original Master and formed a contract with him must be a Master from the last Grail War."

Rin nodded in agreement. "It's the only thing that makes sense, and it would explain a lot about Lancer's behavior. He casually attacked other Servants without even trying to conceal his true identity— _no one_ does that. Lancer's only role was to collect information on enemies, which means his current Master must have a more combat type Servant at his disposal."

A moment of contemplative silence passed. This "more combat type Servant" could only be Gilgamesh. Saber felt a chill course through him as he remembered he hadn't seen Shira at all since last night. For all he knew, this Master had taken her captive—Shira might be in danger at this very second.

Saber struggled to keep his voice neutral as he spoke. "Rin, do you have any idea where Shira could be?"

"No; that's why I was asking you earlier. Wait a minute," Rin snapped her fingers in realization, "she probably went to see Kirei again."

Saber's eyes narrowed. "Kotomine Church." And with that, he quickly stood up and hurried out of the estate, ignoring a startled Rin asking him where he was going. His armor materialized in a burst of light, and he continued running in the direction of the church.

From the moment he had arrived at Kotomine Church the night Shira summoned him, he knew that place was far from holy ground. It was quite similar to Ryudou Temple—the air was stifling and full of death. The thought passed through Saber's mind before he could stop it: _Shira, what were you thinking, going there alone?_

It wasn't long before the church was in sight, and Saber felt a wave of nausea assault his senses. The nausea, however, was not coming from him—it was coming from Shira. Whatever was happening inside that building, it was clear that his Master was on the verge of death.

 _Shira is dying._ Those three words hit Saber like a blow to the face. _Shira is dying!_ And if he didn't get there in time, she would die remembering him as the one who had so callously rejected her, never knowing that he—

With a fresh burst of speed, Saber crashed through the church's doors. He raced through the chapel, through the courtyard, and down the stairs that led underground without giving his surroundings a second glance. He stopped once he made it inside a stone chamber, looking around. If the smell of death was potent before, it was almost completely overwhelming now.

Saber saw the entrance to another chamber almost at once, but he noticed neither the undead corpses nor the coffins. All his eyes took in was the sight of Shira lying face first on the ground in a pool of her own blood.

"Shira!" he exclaimed, moving to run towards her.

But before he could reach her, Lancer appeared in front of him, blocking his way.

"Greetings," Lancer said with a slight smirk.

Saber bit back a snarl as he raised Excalibur, swinging it at the spearman with a battle cry. Lancer used Gae Bolg to protect his face, blocking Saber's attack. The sword and spear clashed for a few seconds, but both Servants were soon knocked back from each other. Saber took advantage of the momentary pause to look over at Shira's much too still form, wondering how quickly he could get her out of here.

Lancer took note of what he was looking at and laughed harshly. "You know, that's the second time I've impaled that girl in the chest. This time, I made sure she won't be coming back."

The knight snapped his gaze back to his opponent, glaring. "You used Gae Bolg on Shira?!" he demanded.

"I missed her heart," Lancer concurred, twirling his spear in a circle, "but she's tasting the curse all the same." He now pointed Gae Bolg at Saber. "No wound inflicted by this spear will ever be healed."

Saber's only reply was to charge forward, swinging Excalibur. Lancer evaded the blow, then thrust Gae Bolg in Saber's direction. The blond parried the attack and leapt backward out of the spearman's range, and the two combatants proceeded to rush towards each other, the sound of their weapons clanging filling the air.

Meanwhile, Shira took no notice of the fight taking place only a few feet in front of her, did not even register the pain coming from her wound. All she could do was lie there, motionless and eyes devoid of their usual shine, as she lost herself in the most vivid flashback of the fire she had ever experienced. It seemed that all of her senses were in overdrive: she could _feel_ the oppressive, scorching heat of the flames, _taste_ the dark smoke that threatened to suffocate her, _hear_ the screams of men, women...and children.

Shira now knew who those living corpses had to be—the other children who had been orphaned because of that fire. She hadn't been the only child taken to the hospital, but she had been the only one who had been adopted right away; the rest had been taken to Kotomine Church...and were now used by the priest himself as a supply of mana, never being allowed the mercy of death.

The petrified, pleading screams of children grew louder and louder in Shira's ears. All they wanted was to be saved, for their agony to end, but...

 _I can't do it,_ she thought, miserable and racked with guilt. _I can't save you. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I can't do anything..._

Somewhere in her PTSD-addled mind, she heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Was it Saber? No—whoever it was had grabbed her by the roots of her hair and was now dragging her along the ground like a wagon. It couldn't be Saber; surely he would have more respect for his Master than that, right?

"That's enough, Saber."

The knight in question abruptly stopped mid-charge, lowering his sword in surprise as Kotomine emerged from the second chamber. Saber saw that Kotomine was pulling Shira by the hair. _Release her! Now!_ he was bursting to yell, but the priest chose that moment to continue.

"I suggest you sheathe that sword of yours." Kotomine carelessly threw Shira to the ground, and the redhead let out a small, pained yelp. "If all you want is to retrieve the girl, I will gladly turn her over to you. After all," he smirked, "my only duty in this War is to determine who truly has the right to possess the Holy Grail."

 _You expect me to believe that when I now know you are the one who killed Lancer's Master and will certainly do the same to mine?_ Saber thought furiously.

"In fact," Kotomine went on, "if that is what you desire, I can grant you the right to possess the Grail now."

Lancer turned to face the priest, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Oh, really? Because I thought it wouldn't appear until there's only one Master and Servant left."

"The vessel for the Holy Grail is a separate thing entirely," Kotomine said smoothly. "It's a tangible object that must be prepared. As the end of the War nears, power will flow into the vessel until the Grail fully materializes. Given that there are only two Servants left, I would imagine that the process is nearly complete. What the Holy Grail is waiting for now is to be filled with the blood of a human sacrifice, and if a worthy person presents themselves, I will gladly give the Grail to them.

"With that said, Shira Emiya," Kotomine stepped over to the prone girl, kneeling beside her, grabbing her by her hair again, and ignoring the grunts that escaped her mouth as she was forced to her knees, "why don't we start this little exchange off by hearing what _you_ have to say regarding the events from ten years ago? Do you honestly feel no hatred for the people responsible for that?"

Saber watched as Shira's eyes, so terribly lifeless and empty, stared out into space. "Ten years ago..." she said faintly. "I couldn't save anyone...I heard their screams, but there was nothing I could do...Everyone wanted to be saved, but I was the only one who lived..."

"The Holy Grail can undo that night, Emiya," Kotomine told her in a voice that could almost be called compassionate. "All of those deaths—all of your guilt—can go away with only a single wish. Just tell me you want the Grail, and it will be yours."

The seconds crawled by in silence as Saber waited for Shira's answer with bated breath.

"No. I don't want _anything_ to do with it."

Her voice was still small, but steady, and the knight let out a sharp exhale, not even having to pretend he was hanging off of her every word.

"The past should remain in the past. If I made it so that the fire didn't happen, what respect would that show to all the families who've spent years overcoming that tragedy? It would all be for nothing if it never happened. Dealing with the pain and moving forward to the future...isn't that the only way to honor the people you've lost? I've been reliving that fire for ten years, and as horrible as it was, it's still shaped both my life and everyone else who went through it."

Shira paused. "No matter how much it hurts, I still think this is the right path to choose."

Kotomine frowned as he set her back down. "I see; so that means—"

"I have no use for the Holy Grail," Shira interrupted. "I have to stay true to who I am, for myself and for all the people that I abandoned."

The priest remained silent as he pulled Shira to her feet and pushed her in Saber's direction. She staggered forward, her legs struggling to hold her weight, and collapsed into her Servant's arms.

"And what about you, Saber?" Kotomine asked, fixing his dark eyes on the blond. "I find it difficult to believe that your answer will be quite as arrogant as Emiya's."

Saber did not reply right away, opting to stare in wonder at the girl he held. He had thought she would agree to the offer to obtain the Holy Grail—that she _should_ agree. When he informed her that they were a lot alike, he hadn't been exaggerating. Both were self-sacrificing, had little regard for their own welfare, harbored immense guilt for something that had happened in their pasts, and yet...

_"Dealing with the pain and moving forward to the future...isn't that the only way to honor the people you've lost?"_

His heart skipped a beat. Shira rejected the Grail as completely as her father did before her, whereas he sought to redo things. Perhaps they weren't as similar as he supposed; clearly, his Master had the inner strength to keep going even after watching her world burn before her eyes. And if she had the strength to do that, could she be strong enough to not break apart after his disappearance?

But that meant his grand plan to protect her from further heartache was—!

"Saber," Kotomine's voice tore him from his thoughts, "kill your Master. Do that, and your wish will come true."

Saber's head shot up to look at the priest. _What...?_ he thought, stunned. Was it that simple? If Kotomine was to be believed, the Holy Grail was now within his grasp. If he obtained it right now, his wish would be fulfilled. A new king would be selected in his place. This king would not allow himself to lose his agency for even a second. Britain would become a peaceful kingdom.

And all it would take was one blow from Excalibur.

But still Saber hesitated.

_"Are you that desperate for the Holy Grail?"_

He had been seeking a way to change the past for so long. Even before Morgan raped him, he never thought he was worthy to take the throne. Nonetheless, he had shouldered the responsibility of ruling his country. He had sacrificed a great deal to fight for his people, and he didn't regret it. On the other hand, though, if he were truly proud of his accomplishments, why did he want to change things?

_"I swear, you have the biggest guilt complex ever."_

Yes; yes, he did. He blamed himself for the rape, he blamed himself for Guinevere's infidelity, and he blamed himself for Britain's civil war. As King, any disaster that occurred would be on his head, it didn't matter that he never chose those events to happen, it didn't matter that he never asked for it—

He never asked for it.

 _He never asked for it_.

The realization hit him suddenly, like a blind man seeing the sun for the very first time. He didn't encourage Morgan to follow him to his chambers. He didn't tell Guinevere to have an affair with Lancelot. He certainly didn't order his knights to betray him. Hadn't they all made their own decisions, their own choices? And if that was true, that meant...

There was no reason for his wish.

Saber's expression hardened. "What a fool you are, Kotomine. You dare to presume that I would kill Shira just to lay my hands on the Grail?"

He felt more than heard the slight gasp from the redhead.

"What Shira can offer me," he continued, "is far more desirable than what the Grail can. I want no part of it if the Holy Grail is going to pollute me; I already have everything I ever wanted."

It was true. He had his oath as the King, his pride as a knight...he even had the dream he had once, the night before he drew Caliburn from its stone: a long forgotten vision of a beautiful green meadow bathed in warm sunlight and a joyously smiling girl with long, straight red hair and bright brown eyes standing before him.

"Saber..." Shira mumbled.

"Shira, take my hand." Saber placed his hand on Shira's, and his body began to glow with mana. The mana spread to Shira, and she felt the pain recede from her wound.

In seconds, Shira was strong enough to stand on her own, even though her injury was still not completely healed. She straightened up and took a step away from Saber, looking at him questioningly as life returned to her eyes.

"Nothing can affect you as you are now," he said, "not even Gae Bolg's curse."

Kotomine regarded the pair coolly. "You two are so incredibly tedious." He paused momentarily. "It seems I will have to keep the Holy Grail after all, which means both of you must die."

With a smirk, Kotomine snapped his fingers; as if on cue, footsteps were heard descending the stairs. Shira and Saber turned to see Gilgamesh entering the underground chapel.

"Allow me to introduce you," Kotomine went on. "This was the Epic Spirit who was my partner in the previous Grail War, but I believe you three may have already met before."

Shira exchanged glances with Saber; the latter seemed unsurprised, while the former was quite the opposite. Kotomine being a Master instead of the impartial supervisor he was supposed to be was one thing, but being the Master of Lancer _and_ Gilgamesh? How was that possible?

Gilgamesh did not bother with going down all the way, but instead jumped off the staircase to land in the middle of the chamber. Saber immediately put a protective arm in front of Shira, but Gilgamesh did not so much as turn in their direction, addressing Kotomine instead.

"So, this is where we're going to finish things?" The arrogant king shot a disdainful look at Lancer, who had been glaring at him the minute he stepped in. "And with this pesky little nuisance underfoot as well?"

"Who is this guy?" Lancer demanded, snapping his furious gaze to Kotomine. "Have you been working with two Servants this whole time?!"

"I never told you?" the priest asked, sounding completely unconcerned. "When the last Holy Grail War ended, he and I entered into a partnership where I would give him the sustenance he required in order to remain here."

"Sustenance," Lancer repeated, spitting out the word as if it were a curse. "So that explains this disgusting place. And why am I only hearing about this now?"

Kotomine raised an eyebrow. "If I had told you this earlier, would you have honestly fought alongside him as an equal?"

Lancer scoffed. "I'd die before I cooperated with him."

Shira chose that moment to speak up as she and Saber slowly moved towards the stairs. "So when I told you about there being an eighth Servant, Kotomine, you were just lying when you said you didn't know who it was."

"He disobeyed my instructions to simply watch and observe and revealed himself to you," Kotomine said. "If you investigated him, the trail would have eventually led to me, so I had no choice but to come up with a new plan." He chuckled. "But Emiya, nothing I said was really an outright lie."

 _No, you just twisted the truth to suit your own purposes,_ Shira thought angrily. _I knew there was something I didn't like about you._

Kotomine turned his gaze to Saber. "This is like a repeat of ten years ago, isn't it, Saber?"

The knight tensed, his eyes narrowing.

"But back then," Kotomine continued, "I was defeated by Kiritsugu, so I was unable to witness the final scene. Backed into a corner, I touched the Holy Grail just as it was beginning to appear. Not even I could have foreseen the consequences of that action."

Shira felt her stomach drop. "That's why— _you're_ the one who caused—!"

"That fire was the result of your attempt to take the Grail?" Saber cut in icily.

"That was not my original intention," Kotomine said calmly. "I had simply wished for everyone in that particular area to disappear." He started to walk forward. "The Grail would have done the same thing whether I had touched it or not."

"That's ridiculous," Saber protested. "The Holy Grail is merely a tool designed to grant its owner their wish."

"Really?" Kotomine's mouth set into a grim line. "And how do you think it goes about granting wishes? What the Holy Grail really is is an incredibly powerful weapon matched by no other, and the wishes it grants are delivered with destruction."

By now, Shira and Saber were forced to step aside as Kotomine reached the stairs.

"Are you saying," Saber's voice shook with outrage, "that the Holy Grail I have been searching for—!"

"Is nothing but a cursed chalice," Kotomine finished, "that destroys everything but its owner." He stood at the top of the stairs, never looking back. "It's time for the trash to be disposed of. Lancer, take Saber. Gilgamesh, take Emiya."

And with that, the priest walked out of the underground chapel, leaving Shira and Saber alone with their two enemies.

Shira's gaze darted between Lancer and Gilgamesh; the spearman was readying Gae Bolg while the king had already activated the Gate of Babylon. Saber ought to be able to hold off Lancer, but could he hold off both Lancer and Gilgamesh at the same time if they decided to team up to kill him? And she'd be screwed ( _In more ways than one,_ she thought as a cold shiver went up her spine) if she tried to go up against Gilgamesh. No, the only option she and Saber had was to retreat.

Before Shira could voice any of this to Saber, he grasped her hand firmly in his own.

"Whatever happens, do not leave my side."

"Saber, we have to—"

Shira abruptly stopped speaking as a long, thin sword appeared in front of Gilgamesh and he threw it in her direction. Saber made to deflect the weapon—

But in that instant, Lancer had rushed in and blocked the projectile himself. Saber and Shira stared at him in shock; Gilgamesh, however, did not look at all surprised, only annoyed.

"What are you doing?" he snapped. "Your target is Saber. You do remember that the girl's mine, right?"

"There's been a change of plans," Lancer retorted. "I refuse to be a part of this."

"Lancer, what are you—?" Saber started to ask.

"Don't get the wrong idea," the spearman interrupted. "I have no intention of fighting for you guys. Believe it or not, the only thing I'm doing is," his voice rose as he lunged at Gilgamesh, Gae Bolg raised, " _siding with my principles_!"

Gilgamesh easily jumped out of the way of Lancer's attack, and he landed on his feet with a slight, amused grin. "Really? You're going to break your contract when you're this close to getting the Holy Grail?"

"You're missing the whole point!" Lancer charged forward, thrusting his spear again. "Real heroes don't give a damn about a second chance at life!"

Again, Gilgamesh avoided the blow. Less than a second later, another sword materialized in his hand, and he knocked Lancer away from him.

"Lancer, you are no match for him by yourself!" Saber exclaimed.

The spearman landed on his feet, not sparing the knight a glance. "Just take your woman and get the hell out of here. I'm not protecting you because I want your friendship."

Saber bit his lip, torn between helping Lancer fight Gilgamesh and escaping with Shira while they still had the chance. Finally, he gave a brief nod.

"Good luck to you, then."

Shira and Saber turned around and hurried up the stairs as quickly as they could. Gilgamesh and Lancer exchanged more words, but Shira hardly listened as she and Saber left the underground chapel and made their way out of the church.

* * *

It was only when Shira and Saber arrived at a cemetery that they were forced to stop, the former's injury throbbing again.

"Let me take a look at your wound," Saber said after Shira sat down in the grass. He knelt down beside her and pressed his hand to the spot where she'd been stabbed; if he was at all embarrassed about touching her chest, he refused to show it.

"My apologies, Shira, but this may hurt a little." So saying, he closed his eyes and his hand began to glow. Shira screwed her own eyes shut and gritted her teeth as Saber suddenly dug his fingers into her wound, doing her best to contain the pained noises that wanted to escape her mouth. As the seconds passed, though, the pain started to fade.

Shira opened her eyes as Saber withdrew his hand.

"I repaired the scabbard with my own mana," he explained. "Your injury will begin healing shortly."

"Scabbard?" Shira frowned in confusion. "Wait, are you talking about Excalibur's scabbard?"

Saber nodded. "Yes, Avalon, the scabbard that was stolen from me towards the end of my reign. Believe it or not, Shira, Avalon is inside your body. It was only when you projected it two nights ago that I realized how you have been able to heal so quickly. And it explains how an untrained magus like you would be able to summon me—Avalon was used as a catalyst."

"But why the heck would a scabbard be in my body?" Shira wanted to know.

"I can only assume that it was all Kiritsugu's doing," the knight replied.

The redhead blinked quizzically. "My dad?"

"In the previous Holy Grail War, Avalon was also used to summon me as Kiritsugu's Servant. Since that scabbard is a Noble Phantasm that heals the bearer's wounds, Kiritsugu thought it would be more advantageous to keep it rather than return it to me." Saber paused. "And after the War was over, amidst the charred ruins, he stumbled upon a dying young girl. Embedding Avalon in that girl's body was the only choice he had to save her life."

Shira absentmindedly put her hand to her chest, quietly absorbing Saber's words. After that fire, she had fully expected to die; what other fate was there for her? But her father came along and saved her life...by putting a magical, healing scabbard inside her body.

And to hear Saber tell it, it looked like her summoning him had been less of an accident than she thought.

"I'm sorry," Shira said out loud, smiling wryly, "for using your scabbard to patch myself up."

"Don't be." The smile on Saber's face was gentle. "When I realized Avalon was with you, I was very happy. I had never been able to save anything...except for your life, Shira."

Warmth that had nothing to do with the sunlight shining down on them blossomed in Shira's heart. She could detect no lie in Saber's voice, just like before in the underground chapel when he declared that he would rather have her than anything the Holy Grail could give him. He might not have actually said those three little words to her, and maybe he would never be comfortable enough to say them, but Shira finally knew the truth: he reciprocated her love for him.

She was seriously considering kissing him right there in the cemetery when Saber spoke again, staring into space.

"Kiritsugu was right. I have no need for the Holy Grail. He must have seen it before I did, that I cannot go back and change the past. He saw the truth of what I have been deceiving myself with this entire time."

He looked back at Shira with another, sadder smile. "Please forgive me, not merely for pursuing such a misguided wish, but for how I treated you last night."

"It's okay," she assured him. Being rejected after their kiss had hurt, but after today, she couldn't hold it against him if she tried.

"Shira," Saber began after a moment of silence, "I now know the path I must take."

He didn't elaborate, but she knew what he was saying. He had accepted his past as it was and no longer wanted to change it. Therefore, there was only one thing left to do.

"All right, then," Shira said, intertwining her fingers with Saber's. "Let's destroy the Holy Grail."

She knew exactly what would happen. Destroying the Holy Grail meant that Saber would disappear from this world. He would go back in time, go back to lying underneath that tree, and die of his battle wounds.

And no matter how badly she wanted him to stay, no matter how much she would miss him once he was gone, Shira knew this was no time for tears.

This was a time to be strong.

Saber gave Shira's hand a light squeeze. "I was confident that you would come to that same conclusion, Master."


	23. The Final Showdown, Part One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before we get started on the next chapter, I would like to present the first of two F/GR omakes that Ascarde (who might have a new penname by now; I haven't talked to him in years) wrote for me.

"Saber," Kotomine's voice tore him from his thoughts, "kill your Master. Do that, and your wish will come true."

Saber's head shot up to look at the priest. _What...?_ he thought, stunned. Was it that simple? If Kotomine was to be believed, the Holy Grail was now within his grasp. If he obtained it right now, his wish would be fulfilled. A new king would be selected in his place. This king would not allow himself to lose his agency for even a second. Britain would become a peaceful kingdom.

And all it would take was one blow from Excalibur.

A choice and decision no one could blame him for.

Before he was even consciously aware of what he was doing, almost like he was watching it happen to someone else, Excalibur rose and fell. Blood splattered the floor of the underground chapel.

Saber stared with blank shock and amazement at the blood dripping along the length of holy steel.

Silence. Silence from Lancer, from Kotomine, from Gilgamesh listening in the shadows just up the stairs. Only the steady drip of blood, his Master's— _Shira's_ —blood, disturbed the quiet as it dripped mournfully like tears onto the floor.

He had only considered it for a fraction of a second.

But that fraction of a second had been enough.

It immediately was replaced by Shira's confession, and images flashed through his mind. The summoning, the date, the confession, the kiss, the...rejection. Every single precious moment he had with the girl who was lying on the floor, blood pooling around her neck.

"Wha—" Saber gasped, staring vacantly at Shira's unseeing eyes, her throat carved by the sword he clutched in his hand. Instantly, he dropped Excalibur, that worthless, _worthless_ blade. He fell to his knees and cradled Shira's cooling body to his own, the pristine silver armor being stained irreparably.

There was nothing proud in his figure. The life of the woman who loved him with all her heart was ended by the very blade that lay at his side. He felt its tip pointing at him like a judge issuing his final verdict.

"No...no, Shira...!" Desperation crept into Saber's voice. He fed his mana into Avalon with more urgency than he had ever felt, but he couldn't feel anything. No healing light, no regeneration...nothing.

Lancer grimaced and turned from the sight. Then, unreasonable, unrestrained fury burst forth within him. She so clearly loved him, he could see it, Kotomine could've seen it, the whole damn world could've seen it! Except, it seemed, Saber. And Saber tossed aside what he could've had for a possibility.

Kotomine smiled where no one could see him. To see the once proud King of Knights surrender to despair and watch his delicate mind fracture and splinter...there was no greater joy he could've possibly asked for.

Gilgamesh stared on silently, his crimson eyes flashing. He took some measure of satisfaction that Saber's cute little Master was dead and he was now free to bathe him in the tainted mud and break him at his leisure. But it would not be fun. From Saber's vacant appearance, he doubted that anything would reach him, and he may even take some relief should he decide to simply kill him. He snorted, before walking away and slamming the church door. He lost sight of his ideals; hell, he'd be surprised if Saber even knew what he was supposed to be doing now. Breaking an already broken toy would be just repetitive.

Kotomine put a heavy hand on Saber's shoulder, prompting him to look up, his blue-green eyes watering. "Well done. That lamentation is indeed enough to reach the Holy Grail." He smiled benevolently. "Now, Saber, King of Knights, what is your wish?"

He took the golden cup in a daze, before crying to the heavens. Kotomine's smile grew even wider, Lancer left the chamber, and Gilgamesh had already left the building. The cold, unfeeling stone of the underground chapel was all that was left, and it felt like a tomb.

Appropriate for his Master.

**DEAD END**

_Tiger Dojo! A strange hint corner!_

Ascarde: First omake I've ever written! What d'ya guys think?

Ilya: I never expected the knight in shining armor to kill the maiden, especially not after her confession.

Ascarde: Well, I—

Taiga: *staring at Shira* In the original Fate/stay night, this ending was achieved by turning Saber off and having a low affection score at the end. I don't even know how you managed to get Saber's affection score low enough to get to this end! You confessed to him, flags were everywhere, WHAT HAPPENED?!

Ilya: Oh, Ascarde here decided that there was too much fluffiness and not enough BAD ENDS, so he wrote one himself.

Taiga: *flatly sighs* Since this is all following a script, I can't help you out here, but I can try.

Ilya: Here's one that's pretty obvious; don't go to Kotomine Church alone! You haven't traced a weapon yet except Avalon, and even that was in the spur of the moment! You're lucky that Lancer didn't decide to use his Gae Bolg; you would've been dead in the water!

Taiga: Now shoo! I don't expect to see you again unless one of the readers decides to take reality and rewrite it again!

Ascarde: But rewriting reality is one of my favorite pastimes...

Saber is seen huddled in the corner, a dark cloud of despair over him. His arms are wrapped around his knees, and he's rocking back and forth, facing the corner. His eyes look haunted.

* * *

It was slow going, what with Shira leaning on Saber for support, but they made it back to the Emiya estate that evening, the former's wound fully healed by the time they got there. At once, they headed to the front door and Shira slid it open, hoping to find Rin and tell her everything that had happened at Kotomine Church.

Once she and Saber were inside, though, she knew instantly that something was wrong. All the lights were off, and the house was eerily quiet, as silent as the cemetery. But it was not only the darkness and silence that let Shira know that something must have happened while she and her Servant were gone.

It was the heavy scent of blood.

"Tohsaka!" Shira exclaimed, hurrying into the hallway with Saber about two paces behind her. She threw the door to the dining room open—and gasped at what she saw.

The room was a disaster, almost as if a tornado had blown through it. The table was thrown off to the side, the vase of flowers had been knocked over from where it usually stood on top of the cupboard near the door, and the doors on the other side of the room were kicked down. Bits of the table, shards of glass, flower petals, and scuff marks were scattered across the floor. And worst of all, Rin, her hair, face, and clothes stained with dark red blood, was sitting down, clutching at her deeply wounded stomach, and leaning heavily against the far wall, which was smeared with blood that slowly dripped to the ground.

"Rin!" Saber gasped, sounding as appalled as Shira felt.

"Where've you been?" Rin's voice was raspy and weak. "You took so long...I was almost going to fall asleep..."

"Don't talk!" Shira raced over to her; how long had she been bleeding like this? "Saber, we need towels and a wash bowl!"

Without a word, Saber ran to the bathroom to carry out her order. Shira turned away from the sight of Rin breathing raggedly. _Bandages—she needs bandages!_ The redhead walked to the cupboard, sweeping the glass away with her hand, and opened the cupboard's door.

"It's okay; I've already treated myself," Rin rasped as Shira found the first aid kit. "I'm sorry, but I wasn't...able to protect Ilya."

"Ilya?" Shira sharply turned her head in Rin's direction. "It was Kotomine, wasn't it? He kidnapped her?"

Rin gave the tiniest of nods. "He had me fooled. I never suspected...that the seventh Master...was Kirei."

And why would she have suspected him? Rin may have claimed that she'd be happy to have had nothing to do with Kotomine when she'd taken Shira to the church during that fateful night, but the man had been her teacher, even her guardian. Rin had to have trusted the man at least a little if the fact that he was a Master—let alone that he was capable of beating the daylights out of her—had blindsided her.

"Save your strength," Shira told the black-haired girl as she knelt down in front of her. "We can talk about this later."

Rin shook her head. "Not really. There are a few things you really should know. These are my last bits of advice, Shira, so pay attention."

 _Must you say it in a way that makes it sound like you're dying?_ But Shira silently bobbed her head.

"Number one," Rin began, holding up her index finger. "Kirei's main objective is Ilya. I'm sure he knew all along that she's the vessel to call forth the Grail."

"A sacrifice," Shira commented darkly as Saber returned with a hand towel and a bowl filled with water, "just like Caster wanted to do with Sakura."

"What he wants to use is her heart," Rin said, allowing Saber to wipe the blood from her face with the wet towel. "Magi are nothing more than typical humans who have magic circuits, but Ilya is the opposite. She's magic circuits that have a human form. But I don't think Kirei will kill her right away, because the path to the Grail won't open until there's only one Servant left.

"Here's number two." Two fingers were held up. "I think Kirei went to Ryudou Temple. It's the best place for the Holy Grail to manifest. And one last thing...no matter what you do, you're no match for Kirei. But you're still going to fight him, aren't you?"

"Of course I am," Shira said firmly. There was no other choice; Kotomine had taken Ilya and was planning to summon the Grail, which she and Saber now knew was corrupt. Whatever wish that priest wanted granted, it wouldn't be anything good.

But there was another reason why Shira had to face Kotomine, and it was more personal than simply because he was a dangerous Master who had to be stopped. Kirei Kotomine was the man who was responsible for the fire ten years ago, who murdered countless people with that inferno, and who was using those poor orphans as fuel for Gilgamesh. As the survivor of that fire, who else but Shira Emiya ought to be the one to take him down?

Something that looked like a smile flitted across Rin's face. "Here; you should take this." She pulled out a small dagger and held it out for Shira.

"An Azoth Dagger," Saber said from beside his Master as he stared at the weapon.

"It's a magical staff in the shape of a knife, a ceremonial dagger that a magus receives when they come of age," Rin explained lowly.

Shira took the Azoth Dagger and examined it as Rin continued speaking.

"It's pretty weak stuff compared to my gems, but I charged it with mana whenever I could. Just say the word 'läβt' and your mana will flow into the blade."

"Are you sure?" Shira asked.

"I'm sure," Rin assured her. "I knew I wasn't going to beat Kirei, so I hid it from him, but I want you to take it." She paused, and when she next spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper and suddenly sounded exhausted. "Do you need anything else? Because I feel really, really sleepy right now."

Shira smiled warmly. "It's alright, you can rest now. I mean, as long as you're okay."

Rin was silent for a few more seconds. "Here's something else, and it's not a request." Her blue eyes shone with a little of her usual fire. "Shira, you have to win this, even if it kills you. But if I wake up and you're dead, I'm not coming to your funeral."

Perhaps she should have been offended by that last sentence, but as Rin's eyes finally fluttered shut, Shira couldn't help feeling amused.

_Yep; Tohsaka will definitely be okay._

* * *

Saber furrowed his brow slightly, taking in what Shira had just said as they faced each other in the storage shed. "Are you absolutely certain you want to do this?"

Shira nodded. "Avalon is your scabbard, so it's only right that I give it back to you."

"It is true that my mana will increase if Avalon is returned to me," Saber admitted, "but it still won't guarantee that I will be able to defeat Gilgamesh. And once the scabbard is removed from your body..." His voice trailed off.

"I know," Shira told him. "If I get hurt, I'll stay hurt. Still, I think I've been relying on that thing too much, anyway. People die if they're injured badly enough, and that's only normal."

There was nothing Saber could say to that. He looked down, closing his eyes. After a momentary pause, he opened his eyes and looked up at Shira.

"Very well, then," he conceded. "I will need to borrow your mind in order to do this."

"Better make it fast," Shira said. "We don't have much time."

Wordlessly, Saber stepped closer to Shira, and she closed her eyes in concentration. As he pressed a hand glowing with mana to her chest and plunged it into her body, she let herself focus solely on the image of Excalibur's scabbard. Taking out Avalon should be similar to the steps needed for projection magic; all Shira had to do was gather the pieces of the scabbard infused with her body and return it to its original form.

The mental image of the golden Avalon shone clear and bright, but she increased her concentration. If Shira really was going to return this scabbard to Saber, her visualization of it had to be perfect, flawless, _complete_. In the back of her mind, she knew she must be sweating from the effort, but she couldn't stop, not until Avalon was a reality.

Another image appeared; she saw her Servant as she had seen him in her dreams—a proud, gallant King who fought tirelessly with Excalibur in his hand and Avalon at his hip. Shira wasted no time in engraving the image of the scabbard that had protected him and led him to victory after victory into her mind and heart, as if it was something precious that she should never forget, no matter how this War ended for them.

And just like that, the process was over. Shira's eyes snapped open, her breath coming out in pants. She sank to her knees, suddenly aware of the sweat pouring off of her, feeling drained and strangely empty after having Avalon separated from her body.

"Amazing," she heard Saber say, his voice hushed. She looked up at him to see that he was staring at the glowing, golden scabbard in his hands, his eyes wide with awe. "This is perfect."

 _Well, that_ was _the plan,_ Shira thought, smiling slightly.

* * *

It was as if the mountain had become a living organism. Despite it being a winter night, the wind coming down from the entrance to Ryudou Temple was unnaturally warm—humid, really—and the shaking trees were like human lungs. Yet, even with the warmth, Shira felt her skin erupt in goose bumps with every step she took.

"The concentration of mana is so dense here," Saber commented. "I expect this means the summoning of the Holy Grail has begun, or it has ended. Either way, Gilgamesh must have defeated Lancer."

Shira wiped cold sweat from her brow, then turned to face her Servant. "Saber, when we make it to the temple, I'll go after Kotomine while you take care of Gilgamesh. Neither of us can leave our opponent to help the other. Only one of them needs to die to stop them from getting the Grail."

"Understood," was all Saber said, nodding curtly.

There was nothing left to say, so Shira and Saber proceeded to walk up the stone stairs that led to Ryudou Temple. The closer they got to their destination, the denser the air, the presence of mana growing stronger. Sweat continued trickling down Shira's face, her senses heightened in anticipation of confronting their last and most powerful opponents.

There were so many ways this could play out. If Shira died but Saber killed Gilgamesh, then Kotomine would be unable to obtain the Grail. If Saber died but Shira defeated Kotomine, then Gilgamesh would fade away from this world. If Shira _and_ Saber died...well, she didn't want to think about that.

But if they were able to defeat both Kotomine and Gilgamesh, that meant they would be free to destroy the Holy Grail. And after that happened...

_It will be time for us to say goodbye._

The thought pierced through Shira's mind, as cold and unforgiving as steel. Even if the fifth Holy Grail War ended in victory for them, Saber would still disappear. He would go back to his era, take his place among legends, and die. The death of the King of Knights, struck down at the end of his final battle...it was something that Shira could not save him from.

She felt her heart painfully constrict in her chest. Saber was still there, walking beside her on the stairs, but even what little distance there was between them felt too large a gap. Just how much bigger would that gap be after everything was said and done? Much, much too big—separated by time, space, _death_...

 _I can't do this._ Those four words repeated over and over in Shira's head, becoming more hysterical with each repetition. _I can't do this! I can't do this!_ They had just found each other, damn it! They had fought together, trained together, and protected each other. They had shared meals, the estate, their pasts, even a bed that night in the ruins. He was her first date, her first kiss, and her first— _only_ —love.

It had been little over two weeks since Shira met Saber, and two weeks would never be enough time to spend with him. Even if she'd realized her feelings for him the instant she first gazed up at him, even if they'd acted on their love much earlier than they did, the time they had would still not be enough.

For half a second, Shira seriously considered stopping, grabbing Saber by his arm, and begging him to turn back and run away with her. Half a second later, they were only a few steps away from reaching Ryudou Temple, and the redhead cursed herself for even entertaining something like that. Kotomine and Gilgamesh had to be defeated, the Holy Grail had to be destroyed, and Ilya—she cursed herself again for temporarily forgetting about the situation the little girl was in—had to be rescued. Running away wouldn't solve anything.

"Saber," Shira heard herself say, turning to face him. The blond fixed his eyes on her, as composed as ever. If he was as upset over their parting in the much too near future as she was, it did not show on his face. _Too many years of hiding emotion,_ she thought, and she envied him for seeming so strong when all she wanted to do was fall apart.

Letting this man go would be the hardest thing she ever had to do. But what choice did she have? None. So instead of asking him if they could run away together, she managed to curve her lips upward and said, "Let's go. This'll be our last battle, so good luck."

"I promise not to disappoint you, Shira," Saber replied solemnly. "And I wish you luck as well."

And with that, they ascended the remaining steps to the temple's entrance, to the unnatural red light filling the mountaintop. Within that light was the heady pressure of mana coming from the back of the building.

" _There_ you are, Saber. It's about time you showed yourself."

Standing before them, as casually as if the overwhelming taint of the Grail had no effect on him, was Gilgamesh.

"The portal to the Holy Grail has just begun to open," he said unnecessarily. "This curse is the contents of the Grail, the Third Element which keeps us Servants in this world." Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed coldly as he stared at Saber. "It is that very curse that you subjugated me to ten years ago. This time, I intend to return the favor—I will bathe you in that mud and make you succumb to my will."

The golden-armored king's gaze drifted to Shira, and the smile that slowly spread across his face was nothing short of sadistic. "Oh, you've brought your Master as well?"

Saber tensed, a dark scowl marring his features as he tightened his grip on the invisible Excalibur.

"I have business with Kotomine," Shira snapped before he could tell Gilgamesh to not even _think_ of looking at her like that, her hand curling into a fist. "I have nothing to say to you."

"What a shame," Gilgamesh said carelessly, "because I have something to say to you." Behind him, the Gate of Babylon was activated, but no swords appeared. Instead, Gilgamesh retrieved a flask with a bubbling potion held within.

"You see," he continued, "what better way to break Saber than to force you to swallow this potion? It will make you hopelessly addicted to the pleasures of the flesh. I'll pin you down and shove so much down your throat, you'll be begging for me to be inside you." His eyes were wide and wild at this point, making him look insane. "You will become my willing sex slave!"

Saber was grinding his teeth, his rage mounting with every sentence Gilgamesh spoke. He was gripping Excalibur so hard that it was a miracle it hadn't broken. Oh, he had never wanted to unleash his holy sword's full power so much...

Shira, meanwhile, did nothing but give Gilgamesh a glare of pure contempt. Perhaps she should have been scared out of her wits, but she was much too angry to be scared. Besides, showing any hint of fear would be giving that sick bastard the satisfaction of knowing he could intimidate her, and that was something she refused to do.

A few seconds later, she and Saber turned to look at each other, and Shira smiled sweetly as she stroked his cheek. "Kick his ass."

That was the last thing she said before hurrying away to the back of the temple. Saber watched her go, then switched his attention back to Gilgamesh. His opponent had returned the potion to his vault, and the hilts of at least fifty swords appeared behind him. Saber gave Gilgamesh enough time to pull out a blade before he kicked off from the ground with a battle cry.

Sparks flew as Excalibur collided with the enemy sword. Saber proceeded to rain a flurry of blows on Gilgamesh, who effortlessly blocked every one of them. The knight jumped back a little, then charged forward, swinging his weapon. Again, his opponent parried the attack as easily as if it had been nothing more than an insect. Undeterred, Saber continued with his strikes, his swings quick and furious. Soon enough, Gilgamesh retreated slightly, then delivered a strike of his own. Saber evaded the swinging sword and leapt up to counterattack.

Gilgamesh lifted his sword in the nick of time, so Excalibur hit the blade rather than his face. With a smirk, he deflected Saber's weapon, causing the younger Servant to reel backward to the ground. Saber raced forward with his sword raised, but again Gilgamesh blocked it, the force of his blow sending Saber back to the stone floor.

Before he could get to his feet, Gilgamesh had rushed towards him, his sword aimed at his neck. Immediately, Saber lifted Excalibur, blocking the fatal strike. He tightened his grip on his sword, exerting more force against Gilgamesh's blade in an attempt to deflect it, but his savagely grinning enemy would not budge. Finally, Saber kicked Gilgamesh in the torso, knocking him away, then stood up and charged forward.

The golden king regained his bearings, parrying Saber's blow. What followed was the clanging of metal on metal as the two swords clashed with each other again and again.

"You know, this is turning out to be a rehash of ten years ago," Gilgamesh said over the sound of the fight. "Surely you didn't come here without a plan."

Instead of answering, Saber swung Excalibur with a yell, disarming Gilgamesh and sending his blade flying into the air. But the Gate of Babylon shimmered, and Gilgamesh pulled out another sword, running towards Saber. The knight blocked the attack, and the next few minutes passed with the two Servants continuing to cross swords. The pattern of attacking, blocking, and counterattacking ended at last when Saber slashed at Gilgamesh's sword, breaking it in half.

The knight jumped back out of striking distance, stooping a bit as he tried to catch his breath. In contrast, his opponent stood tall, showing no sign of fatigue.

"You never learn, do you, boy?" Gilgamesh asked rhetorically. "You'll never be able to defeat me, and that girl will never defeat Kotomine. If you had only stuck to your goal of obtaining the Grail, this battle would have ended victoriously for you." A small smirk tugged at his lips. "As it is, you're completely outmatched."

Saber straightened up, his expression fiercely resolute. "I made the right choice. No matter what happens, I will not lose to you. And Shira will not lose to a knave like Kotomine."

Gilgamesh shook his head as if dealing with a witless child. "It would seem that the only way to convince you is if you suffer an undeniable defeat." From the Gate, countless swords moved forward, awaiting their master's order. "Try dodging this. If you're lucky, they'll only impale your arms and legs."

There was barely enough time for Saber to brace himself before the swords shot forward like bullets. He frantically avoided each blade that came his way, dodging, blocking, repelling, evading. It was like a dark parody of a ballet, where a single misstep had dire consequences.

Finally, Saber eluded the last sword. He doubled over, breathing hard and still clutching Excalibur in his trembling hands. When he looked up, he saw that more swords had appeared from behind Gilgamesh, and he quickly jumped back—

But he wasn't fast enough to avoid the rain of Noble Phantasms that were flung at him. Pained yelps escaped from his mouth as he was hit again and again, the power of the swords chipping at his silver armor and sending him face first to the ground. He grimaced as his wounds made themselves known to him; they were nothing Avalon could not heal shortly, but as Shira once told him, pain was still pain.

He was struggling to get up when he heard Gilgamesh's footsteps walk towards him.

"What's wrong, Saber?" Gilgamesh asked mockingly, bending down and grabbing the knight by the roots of his hair to force him to look up. "Do you finally understand you've been defeated? Or," he smiled wickedly, "is it the thought of that Master of yours writhing beneath me that has you so worked up?"

Of all the nerve! " _Enough_ , Gilgamesh!" Saber snarled, glaring hatefully into those inhuman red eyes. "Not another word about Shira!"

The golden king was amused by this. "Or what? Her virginity was mine the instant I declared it, and as the King, when I see something I want, I have no problem taking it. But," Gilgamesh straightened up and roughly pulled Saber into the air, ignoring the latter's grunt, "if you want her so badly, I suppose I could loan her to you after I've had my fun. All you would have to do is swear undying loyalty to me."

"I will never bow to you!" Saber proclaimed harshly. "Have you forgotten that I am also a king?"

Gilgamesh scoffed. "A country is nothing but a king's property, and if a king can't control his property, then the country has no need for someone as powerful as a king. You, Arthur Pendragon, are a child playing at being a king. No wonder you woke up to find that your people had turned against you."

"Interesting," Saber's voice dripped with venom, "because if I recall correctly, King of Heroes, your own people _despised_ you!"

So saying, Saber clenched the hand that wasn't holding Excalibur into a fist, drew it back, and punched Gilgamesh squarely in the face. Gilgamesh let go of Saber with a yell, reeling backward as the knight regained his footing. Saber got into a battle stance as his opponent turned to face him, looking angry for the first time.

"You impudent little—!"

Saber didn't let Gilgamesh finish the insult. He poured his mana into Excalibur, releasing Invisible Air and revealing the glowing, golden blade. Gilgamesh merely sneered, the Gate of Babylon shimmering as he pulled out Ea. Saber did not allow himself to flinch at the sight of his enemy's most powerful weapon, only tightened his grasp on Excalibur's hilt.

"You've been a thorn in my side long enough." Gilgamesh lifted Ea to be at level with his head and pointed it at Saber. "Away with you, boy."

Ea began to spin, swirling with mana, and Saber raised Excalibur into the air.

"ENUMA ELISH!"

"EXCALIBUR!"

The Noble Phantasms were activated, and two lights—one red, one gold—burst forth.

* * *

The first thing Shira noticed once she got behind Ryudou Temple was the lake. That large body of water, normally so pure and clear, was blackened by tar falling from the void in the red sky. And there Ilya was, stripped and barely alive, strung up at the edge of the black void like a sacrifice.

And standing with his back to the void was Kirei Kotomine.

"Welcome, Shira Emiya," he said. "It would seem that you are the last Master, the one who survived to the bitter end."

"Let Ilya go!" Shira exclaimed furiously.

"Sorry, but I'm afraid I can't do that," the priest informed her, not sounding apologetic in the least. "The Holy Grail may have appeared, but the portal is not yet stable. Because the Einzbern girl is the vessel, she must endure this until there's no life left within her; otherwise, my wish will not be fulfilled."

Kotomine chuckled darkly. "The power of the Holy Grail is endless, and it will create nothing but disaster. The Grail contains every evil known to man, and soon it will curse every aspect of this world." He smiled cruelly. "Impressive, isn't it?"

Shira's eyes narrowed. "So your wish is to use the Grail to create a catastrophe. What I don't understand is why."

"Because it pleases me," Kotomine said, as calmly as Kuzuki had been when admitting his own sociopathic nature. "All pleasure created by humans is a byproduct, an impurity. It is only at the moment of death that humanity has any value. Their whole lives lead to that last opportunity to rise up and shine in the heavens. That last moment of sparkle is my wish."

Shira opened and closed her mouth soundlessly, utterly dumbfounded as she listened to Kotomine's speech. How insane was this man?

He spread his arms out grandly. "You people like to feed off of peace and tranquility, but I prefer to devour nothing less than the light of the stars. And if you think about it hard enough, the fire ten years ago wasn't such a tragedy."

The redhead finally found her voice. "How dare you—!"

"It requires a hell on that large a scale to open the human soul," Kotomine interrupted, "and let the brilliance of our humanity shine through. All those people died screaming because there was something they wanted fulfilled, correct? I know I have a twisted way of showing it, but no one loves our species more than I do. Therefore, I am the only one who is truly worthy to possess the Holy Grail."

"In other words," Shira began, sounding calm enough, "you get satisfaction when people die." Her body tensed. "Let's see how happy you are about _your own death_!"

She sprang forward and took off running, several ideas of how to kill the priest in front of her rushing through her head. She had only made it halfway to Kotomine when tendrils of black mud shot towards her like whips. She dodged the mud coming for her and continued to run, the distance between her and the priest decreasing with each step—

But Shira skidded to a halt upon seeing another glob of mud thrown at her face, and she ducked to avoid it.

"Well, you seem to be in a predicament," Kotomine remarked casually as she continued evading the black sludge. "Unless you can close that gap, there is no way you can defeat me."

Shira screamed as a tendril of mud snaked around her arm, which erupted in a hot, burning sensation.

"Go ahead," Kotomine continued with a hint of a smirk, "put your life on the line. Perhaps at best, you'll get within striking distance."

The girl frantically shook the mud off of her and rubbed at her still burning arm, already missing Avalon's healing power.

"You know, I had high hopes for you." Kotomine's voice prompted Shira to look up at him. "When I learned that you were Kiritsugu Emiya's daughter and wanted nothing more than to follow in his footsteps, I was ecstatic. I never dreamed that I would have the chance to kill Kiritsugu Emiya, yet here I am, fulfilling a desire that went unfulfilled ten years ago."

"Tell me, Kotomine, why do you hate my father so much?" Shira demanded.

"People tend to hate those similar to themselves," Kotomine said. "Kiritsugu and I were very much alike, so everything he did annoyed me. In fact, I'd say that it's the same as the hatred you feel for me."

Shira's brows furrowed at this insult to her adopted father. "My dad was _nothing_ like you!"

The priest gave her a patronizing smile. "You'd like to see it that way, wouldn't you, little girl? After all, your father was a man virtuous enough to let me go. I caused a devastating fire, and even though he had defeated me, he chose not to take my life." His expression darkened. "But to have my life spared by a coldhearted magus was an unpleasant fact that I could never forget.

"However," he went on, smiling again, "sparing me was not his real mistake. His real mistake was believing that by destroying the Grail, he had finally put an end to all the fighting. He lived out his days ravaged by my curse, confident in the belief that he needn't tell you anything, and within a few years, he passed away."

Kotomine's smile became more twisted as he spread his arms out again. "He died with a false sense of accomplishment—the ridiculous notion that he permanently ended the Holy Grail Wars!"

 _"Ravaged by my curse"...?_ Shira's eyes widened in horrified realization. Kiritsugu's death hadn't been the effect of an illness or something; it had been—!

"Are you saying," her voice shook with a mixture of terror and fury, "that my father's dead because of you?!"

"Indeed, I am," Kotomine confirmed. "Do you mind if I ask you what his last moments were like? Did he push all of his responsibilities on the shoulders of his young daughter and pass away believing his mind was at ease?"

Shira glared and kept her mouth tightly shut, resisting the urge to react to the priest's taunt.

But Kotomine didn't seem too interested in whether she replied or not. He lifted his hand to the mud dripping from the void, the black sludge filling his palm.

"Here's your reward, Emiya," he said. "You're about to meet the same fate your father did."

The redhead maintained her silence, clenching her fists at her sides.

"Angra Manyu." Kotomine's eyes flashed as he closed his hand around the mud. "Accept and suffer All the World's Evils!"

The mud was thrown, and Shira's world went pitch black.


	24. The Final Showdown, Part Two

Alone in the endless darkness, all Shira could do was scream.

Torture. Malice. Exile. Execution. Castration. Sadism. Theft. Robbery. Kidnapping. Rape. Arson. Bombing. Suicide. Homicide. Genocide. Manslaughter. Misdiagnosis. Concealment. Fraud. Greed. Murder.

All of this and more—curses created from every sin and every crime imaginable assaulted her senses, scorched her body, destroyed her mind. Nothing existed but this hell, nothing mattered but this pain, and the only reality was she would die.

 _Die,_ the curses seemed to be saying. _Die, die, die, die, die, die, die, diediediediediediedieDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIE—_

 _Dad..._ The thought came feebly as Shira gritted her teeth in agony, unable to continue screaming. _Is this...what you...had to endure...?_

Of course he did; Kiritsugu had spent the last five years of his life burdened with the curse of the Holy Grail. He'd had all the evils of this world inflicted on him, been slowly sapped of his health, and then died, unable to fulfill his wish to save people.

But hadn't his daughter agreed to be a hero in his place?

_"When I was younger, I used to want to become a Champion of Justice, too."_

_"Just leave it to me, Dad. I'm gonna make that dream of yours come true someday. I promise."_

_"Thank you, Shira. That's a relief."_

Yes, she had. Where her father failed, she would succeed, which meant she couldn't let Kotomine beat her like this.

Shira screwed her eyes shut as determination rushed through her, her body tensing defensively against those curses. She had to get out, she had to get out, _she had to get out_ —!

With a fresh scream tearing from her mouth, she burst out of the mud, her prison breaking apart like the cracking of an egg. Rubbing at her throat, she straightened up to glare at Kotomine, who seemed stunned.

"Impossible," he said. "Did you really break that curse?"

Shira ignored him, covertly pulling out the Azoth Dagger she had hidden inside her shirt.

Kotomine continued when she remained apparently motionless, his voice cool. "Well, this is disappointing. You broke through my curse so brilliantly, and now you do nothing? Have you run out of plans so soon?"

The redhead let out a short bark of sardonic laughter. "What plans?" she asked rhetorically. "I've been making it up as I go!"

She whipped out the dagger from behind her back and raced towards Kotomine. The priest once again stuck his hand into the mud coming from the black void, grabbing another glob of sludge and throwing it at Shira.

In seconds, another curse engulfed her. All the World's Evils threatened to devour her. The pain was just as excruciating as the first time.

But she did not scream. She did not cry out. She did not accept death.

Instead, she raised her arm and closed her eyes, having one more trick up her sleeve.

* * *

The golden light of Excalibur crashed against the red light of Ea. The wind blew about wildly as the power of the two blades collided with each other. Gilgamesh was laughing maniacally, so certain of his triumph, while Saber had his lips pressed together in a grim line, hoping against hope that the strength of the Sword of Promised Victory would be enough to defeat the Sword of Rupture.

It was for nothing; all too soon, Ea repelled Excalibur's light, and Saber let out a wordless yell as he was thrown back and slammed into the hard ground. As battered as he was, though, the knight forced himself to get up on his knees, turning around in time to see a smirking Gilgamesh holding Ea above his head, the three components of the blade spinning faster and faster.

Saber managed to stand, using Excalibur as a crutch. For several seconds, the two Servants stared each other down, the red glow surrounding Ea getting brighter as its mana increased. All Gilgamesh needed was to unleash his sword's power one last time, and the King of Knights would be annihilated. No matter how powerful Excalibur was, no matter how much magical energy Saber put into it, it was not capable of beating Ea.

"Enuma Elish!" Gilgamesh bellowed, Ea's red light charging towards Saber.

No, Excalibur was not capable of beating Ea.

But there was something else that could defend against it.

With the power of Ea coming straight for him, Saber took a step forward and thrust out his hand, uttering one single word:

"Avalon!"

* * *

_Trace, on._

The hammer struck down in her head.

Her circuits overflowed with mana.

A bright golden light appeared above her, shaping itself into the scabbard she so needed.

The process only took an instant, bypassing all the steps required for projection. And why not? The scabbard called Avalon had been within Shira Emiya's body for ten years. It was only natural that projecting it would be as simple as breathing.

Without wasting any time, Shira grabbed for Avalon, and her fingertips had barely grazed it when golden light suddenly engulfed the scabbard and shattered the Grail's curse like it was nothing more than glass. She dimly heard Kotomine exclaim something; clearly, he was frozen in shock, and she used that to her advantage.

The Azoth Dagger in hand, she raced towards the priest, who still hadn't moved.

"It's over, Kotomine!" She closed the distance between her and her opponent at long last and promptly stabbed him in the chest.

Kotomine gasped out in pain, staggering back a little from the impact.

"Läβt." Shira's mana poured into the dagger, causing Kotomine's mouth to open in a silent scream.

And just like that, the battle had ended.

* * *

Excalibur's scabbard scattered into golden light as quickly as it had appeared in front of Saber, surrounding him with a barrier. Ea's red light crashed against the barrier, but to say that not even Gilgamesh's strongest Noble Phantasm could hurt Saber at this point would be the understatement of the century. Avalon did not merely give protection; it gave complete isolation by transporting the user to the paradise for which the scabbard was named.

That very paradise that Arthur Pendragon once saw in a dream—that eternal utopia existing outside of space and time that the King of Knights was said to go to after he died—was untouched by any filth or pollution. And just as Avalon could not be reached by the impurities of the physical world, Saber could not be harmed by any Noble Phantasm's power.

Therefore, the light of Ea washed over the barrier, and Saber pushed through the attack, charging forward towards a completely stunned Gilgamesh. With a great cry, the knight allowed his armor to dissolve into light, poured the resulting mana into his sword, and—

"EXCALIBUR!"

The blade was swung, and blinding white light burst forth and engulfed the golden king before he could even think to counterstrike, piercing through his armor and decimating the skin underneath.

The light faded, and there was a long moment of silence. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of Gilgamesh's blood as it spilled to the ground. Saber lifted his head, regarding his enemy coldly, while Gilgamesh stared back at him with a stony expression.

"Insolent child," Gilgamesh rasped sullenly. "You defied me to the bitter end, you and your Master."

"We are not objects for your amusement," Saber said flatly, "especially not Shira."

Gilgamesh's smile was humorless as his wounded body started to disappear. "I suppose the best possessions are the ones you cannot obtain. Farewell, Pendragon. It has indeed been fun."

With those last words, the King of Heroes faded away.

* * *

Kotomine stared in disbelief at the Azoth Dagger still in his chest. "How...how in the world did you get your hands on this dagger?"

"It doesn't belong to me," Shira informed him curtly. "It belongs to Tohsaka."

The priest continued staring at the dagger, a faraway gleam coming to his eyes. "I see. Long ago, just on a whim, I gave it to a certain young girl. That was ten years ago..." He paused. "It's no wonder that I've grown weak."

He suddenly seized up with a pained yell and fell backward, his body submerging in the Grail's mud. Shira waited a few seconds, but he did not get back up from the black sludge. Kirei Kotomine was dead, drowned in the very thing he summoned. She decided it was quite a fitting end for him.

Shira stepped back a little and faced the void in the sky, where the unconscious Ilya still hung from. She had barely a second to wonder how she could get the white-haired girl down when Ilya fell.

The redhead quickly held out her arms. "Trace, on." A blanket was projected into her hands and Ilya fell into it. Shira proceeded to wrap her in the blanket and took a moment to look at her face. Fortunately, Ilya didn't seem to be in any pain; in fact, she was smiling as peacefully as if she were sleeping in her room back at the estate.

Shira heard footsteps behind her, and she didn't need to turn around to know that it was Saber.

 _Well...we've won,_ she thought hollowly. The enemy Masters were dead, the rest of the Servants had disappeared, and no more innocent people could get hurt.

The final moment of the War had arrived: the destruction of the Grail.

And with it, Shira and Saber's parting.


	25. True Ending: Continuation of the Dream

"Shira."

She turned her head in Saber's direction to see him looking at her hesitantly, as though he wasn't sure what he wanted to say. But the pause only lasted a few seconds before his face went blank and he continued walking. It took all of Shira's control not to reach out and touch him as he passed her.

"Give me your order with your last Command Seal," Saber said stoically once he was in front of the void. "Without that, I will not be able to destroy the Holy Grail."

Shira did not reply right away. A lump formed in her throat as she looked down and squeezed her eyes shut, unconsciously tightening her hold on Ilya. Even now, she wanted Saber to stay with every fiber of her being. She wanted to shower him with love, give him the life he had been denied as the King, and to be together with him until old age parted them.

There was nothing Shira wanted more than Saber. For the first time in her life, she wanted _so_ badly to think only of herself.

But she couldn't, could she? She couldn't have him stay with her, not with the Holy Grail looming over their heads, threatening to pollute the world with all the evil it contained and destroy all of humanity. As much as she loved Saber, Shira knew she could not bring herself to essentially murder a countless supply of innocents simply because she was feeling selfish.

And there was another, more important reason why she would have to let him go. He was someone who sacrificed so much of himself to protect his people, who persisted in fighting no matter how wounded and scarred he became, and who drew forth Caliburn and never looked back. As tragic as his life ended up being, there was also something beautiful about how completely selfless he was, and when he returned to his final moments, he would be able to believe his path was the right one.

Who was Shira to stomp all over the pride of King Arthur?

She opened her eyes and looked up at her Servant. Her final Command Seal glowed. " _Saber...fulfill your duty_." There was no emotion in her voice.

Saber held Excalibur in front of him, and golden light surrounded the blade, becoming brighter by the second. He lifted the glowing sword over his head and swung downward with a great cry. The light from Excalibur engulfed the void, breaking it in half and causing it to disappear without a trace.

The light faded, and the sun peeking out from the eastern horizon had replaced the black void. Just like that, the fifth Holy Grail War had officially ended.

Shira's left hand burned for only a split second, then the Command Seal faded from her skin. It was a reminder of what she was so painfully aware of: that her time with Saber was nearly up.

His back was still turned to her, a slight breeze brushing past them, and she heard him sigh. "Everything is over now, is it not?"

"Yeah," she answered quietly. "This is the end."

"As your Servant," he told her, "I have defeated all your enemies and protected you without fail. I am glad I was able to carry out that promise."

"And as my Servant," she said, "I think you're amazing." She wanted to say that, to her, he was so much more than her Servant, but decided it would be unnecessary. After all, he already knew that.

Saber was silent for a few seconds before he next spoke. "There is one last thing you need to know."

Shira felt her breath hitch as he turned around to face her, the rising sun haloing him in its light. He stepped closer to her, his blue-green eyes not straying from her brown ones, and a small smile formed on his face.

"I love you, Shira."

Her heart seemed to both soar and break at his confession, and instead of replying verbally, she gave him a smile of her own, although it did not reach her eyes. She hoped it would be enough to convey everything that she couldn't put into words:

_I love you, too._

_I'll miss you._

_Goodbye._

Saber took Shira's hand in his, lifted it to his lips, and kissed it—a gift from a knight to his lady. He proceeded to gently rub his thumb over her knuckles, causing her skin to tingle, and they continued gazing at one another, both determined to memorize every detail of the other's face.

The sun was steadily rising higher, and Shira was forced to close her eyes against the glare. She felt Saber's hold on her hand disappear, and her heart gave a jolt as her eyes flew open.

In the spot where he had stood in front of her merely seconds before was nothing besides the flat ground and the sunrise. In the very brief time her eyes had been closed, he had faded away like dust in the breeze, leaving only his memory behind.

 _He's gone,_ Shira thought, lowering her hand as her eyes filled with unshed tears. _He's gone..._

Saber would be lying underneath that tree now, his body sustaining the fatal wound given to him by Mordred, and soon, he would be dead, his destiny as the King of Knights fulfilled.

It was something Shira had been forced to accept, but it did not lessen the grief she felt at losing the man with whom she had fallen so quickly and so hopelessly in love. The multiple times she had been stabbed and slashed at during the Grail War had not hurt nearly as much.

 _You'll have to mourn Saber later, Shira,_ a voice told her. _What about Ilya and Tohsaka?_

Ilya and Rin; of course. The former would doubtlessly not be entirely recovered after almost being used as the sacrifice to summon the Grail, and the latter had been covered in a frightening amount of blood the last time Shira had seen her. No, this wasn't the time to dwell on Saber's disappearance. Right now, there were other people she needed to worry about.

Steeling her resolve, Shira turned around, mentally pushed all thoughts of Saber into a tiny corner of her mind, and left Ryudou Temple without letting a single tear fall.

* * *

As he slowly returned to the waking world, the first thing he was aware of was the throb in his stomach. _I'm wounded? But how...?_ While he had gotten quite a few injuries during his fight with Gilgamesh, they had all healed, so why did—?

"King Arthur, I will go and fetch the troops immediately."

He knew that voice; it belonged to one of his knights, one of the men who had pledged his loyalty to him and who maintained that loyalty even when many others had betrayed him. It was the voice of a comrade, a friend, one of the few he'd had during his reign.

"...Bedivere."

And if Bedivere was here, that meant Saber had returned to his era at the moment of his death. He managed to open his eyes enough to know that he was in the forest, lying down with his back against the tree, and the knight who had just begun to walk towards his horse turned back with a startled gasp.

"Sire!" Bedivere exclaimed. "You have regained consciousness?"

"I..." Saber paused. His thoughts turned to Shira, how she had smiled at him after he'd told her he loved her, and how she never looked away from him in their final moments.

Their final moments...he felt his heart constrict painfully.

"I was merely...dreaming for a short while." The lie came easily to Saber's lips. There really wasn't any time to explain to Bedivere about his experiences during the Holy Grail War and how he had fallen for his Master; even if there was, he doubted he would be believed, anyway.

"Dreaming, Your Majesty?" Bedivere repeated, a bit puzzled.

"Yes." Saber smiled, certain that the fondness in his smile, or even that he was smiling at all, only increased his friend's confusion. "It has been a long time since I have had a good dream, so it was an invaluable experience."

Indeed; if his time with Shira had to be put in the context of a dream, then it had been a very sweet dream.

"In that case, please rest without worry," Bedivere said. "If you close your eyes again, you will surely begin the dream from where you left off."

"Continue the dream...?" Saber sensed his hopes rising despite himself. "Is it possible to continue the same dream?"

Bedivere hesitated for a few seconds. "Yes," he finally answered. "I myself have done it many times, sire. You just have to want it enough."

It was another lie, one told for the sake of a dying and possibly delusional king, but Saber appreciated it all the same.

"I see. You are a man of great knowledge." Saber's smile faded as he remembered what still needed to be done. "Listen to me, Bedivere. You must take my sword. Ride through the forest and over that blood-soaked hill, and you will come across a deep lake. I want you to throw Excalibur into that lake."

"But my lord, that would mean—!" Bedivere began to protest.

"Go," Saber interrupted faintly, wishing he had the strength to make his voice sound more firm. "When you have done as I command, return here and tell me what you saw."

Reluctantly, Bedivere picked up Excalibur from where it had rested by Saber's side, mounted his horse, and rode through the forest. As the minutes crawled by, Saber stared without really seeing the trees all around him, ignoring the pain in his wound and waiting for the knight's return.

His eyelids lowered, and he was about to doze off when he heard the trot of Bedivere's horse.

"Sire, I have done as you wish." And it would seem as if he had, since Saber did not see Excalibur in Bedivere's hand.

"And what did you see?" Saber questioned.

"I saw the lake flowing and the sun shining on the water."

Saber knew Bedivere lied about throwing Excalibur into the lake, but he did not waste his breath scolding him. "Follow my command," was all he said.

Bedivere nodded and returned to his horse. As Saber watched him ride away, he allowed himself to reflect on his choice to destroy the Holy Grail. On one hand, it hadn't been a difficult choice; the Grail had been corrupt, and in any case, Saber had by that time let go of his wish to redo the selection of the king.

On the other hand, destroying the Grail had meant that he could not stay with Shira, something he had tried to think of as little as possible. He'd known that the instant he allowed himself to think too deeply about having to leave her, his emotions would override his reason and he would be unable to do what had to be done. For him, his duty had always come before his desires, and his decision to destroy the Grail was no exception.

Saber was on the verge of drifting off again when Bedivere returned on horseback for the second time.

"Have you followed my command?" he asked.

"I have," Bedivere replied.

"What did you see?"

"I saw nothing but the sunlight shining on the lake, my lord."

Once again, Saber did not chide his knight for lying to him. "Do as I say."

For the third time, Bedivere rode through the forest. The pain in Saber's stomach suddenly spiked, and he resisted the urge to flinch or cry out. This was it; it would not be long before his death was upon him.

In his mind, he could see each and every moment he had spent with Shira: being summoned by her, sparring in the dojo with her, having meals with her, fighting to protect her, fighting alongside her. He saw her laughing when he told her that hunger was the enemy, her smiling above him as Rin performed the transfer spell, her tear-streaked face when she discovered what Morgan had done to him, her desperation in trying to get him to reconsider his wish. He saw their date, her confession, their kiss, their reconciliation after he rejected her, and his own confession, something he'd only gotten the courage to do because he knew he would not get another chance.

Saber's eyes grew heavy. Perhaps if his last thought could be of Shira, then he could die content...

"It is done, sire." Bedivere's voice, heavy with sorrow, jerked him back to the present. "I have thrown your sword into the lake."

"And what did you see?"

"An arm shining with golden bracelets emerged from the lake and grabbed Excalibur. The hand brandished the sword three times before it sunk beneath the water."

"Very good," Saber said. "It means Excalibur has been returned to the Lady of the Lake. Thank you, Bedivere, for carrying out your King's final order."

He sighed as the last of his strength ebbed away. His vision was beginning to fade; he hardly noticed his wound now.

"I'm sorry, Bedivere..."

"Your Majesty?"

The smile on Saber's face was sad. "I fear that my slumber this time...will be a...very long one..."

The world slowly went dark, and the final thought of Arthur Pendragon, King of Knights, was of nothing but the name of the young woman he so cherished.

_Shira..._


	26. True Epilogue: End of the Dream

_Shira looked up to see Berserker's latest swing. Barely a second later, Saber rushed forward, countering the attack with Excalibur before their opponent could cleave Shira in two. He backed away to stand next to her, and Berserker growled, running forward with his sword raised._

_"Give me your hand," Saber said curtly, grasping Caliburn's hilt as well. Shira stared at him questioningly, but the resolute expression in his eyes was all the answer she needed._

_Just as she wasn't going to let him die, he wasn't going to let her fight alone._

"Saber..."

Shira blinked, and the forest clearing where she and Saber had defeated Berserker was replaced by the four familiar walls of her bedroom.

It sometimes felt as though it was just yesterday since the fifth Holy Grail War ended, but in reality, it had been sixty years. Shira only had to catch a glimpse of her reflection (white hair, wrinkled, age-spotted skin, and a slightly stooped posture—she knew, courtesy of Rin, that magecraft could be used to make herself look young and even extend her lifespan, but she had chosen not to bother with it) to know that, yes, it had been over half a century since she'd watched Saber stand in front of her with the rising sun at his back right before he disappeared.

It was quite a while before the thought of him brought something other than pain, before she could pick herself up and truly live rather than go through the motions. As time passed, little by little, it became easier to go through each day without him. Eventually, she could wake up in the morning and actually feel well-rested, serve meals without realizing she had made too much food, and smile without it seeming the least bit forced.

For the past six decades, Saber had not been with Shira—he was absent when Ilya died merely a year after the War, when Shira started travelling the world in pursuit of her dream to champion justice, when she unlocked Unlimited Blade Works, and when the Grail system was completely dismantled. But it didn't matter, because although Saber could not physically be with her, she knew he was far from gone.

It had taken her nearly two months after Saber's disappearance, but she eventually remembered that easily forgotten dream she'd had the night she realized she loved him. Saber had been in the meadow of that ever-distant utopia, a joyous smile lighting his face as he took in the sight of... _Shira_. Hope she hadn't felt in weeks had coursed through her, and she knew then that not everything was lost.

Maybe a life with Saber wasn't meant to be, but surely a reunion in Avalon _was_ , regardless of how impossible it seemed.

That thought, that belief she could— _would_ —find him again, was what kept Shira going when being a Champion of Justice took its toll on her. While she had fought in countless battles and saved many people, there were just as many people who she could not save. No matter how hard she fought, no matter how powerful and skilled she became, she could not save everyone. The beautiful ideal she aspired to achieve in her youth gradually became a grim duty, even a burden to be carried at times.

But stopping her footsteps was never an option. Shira had to continue onward, her determination unbroken, if she wanted to have any chance of reuniting with Saber. And at present, as she settled herself down on her futon, she could feel in her heart of hearts that her journey's end was in sight.

Her eyes closed, and fragments of old memories flashed through her mind.

She remembered Saber appearing in a burst of light and driving Lancer out of the storage shed.

_"I am Saber, your Servant. I have come forth in response to your summons. I ask of you: Are you my Master?"_

She remembered the wounds he sustained during his first fight with Berserker.

_"Run! You can't win this!"_

_"No...I can still..."_

She remembered introducing him to Taiga and Sakura.

 _"Fuji-nee, just what are you talking about? Saber's not my boyfriend. He's a boy, he's a friend, and yes, he'll be staying here, but that does_ not _make him my boyfriend!"_

She remembered repeatedly crossing shinais with him in the dojo.

_"There is nothing for you to be ashamed of. You may not have landed a blow on me, but every strike you aimed had an excellent intensity. It's been a while since I have sparred with such an enthusiastic opponent."_

She remembered her distress over his mana depletion, hoping in vain that she would not have to force him to kill anyone.

_"Just try to sleep some more, okay, Saber? You're gonna be all right; you'll get your strength back soon, I promise."_

She remembered transplanting a few of her magic circuits to him and waking up in bed with him the next morning.

_"I meant what I said last night. If losing a little potential I have as a magus is the price for saving you, then I'm willing to pay it."_

She remembered their training session after Berserker's defeat, how he held back as they sparred.

_"You've never had a problem with attacking me before. This wouldn't have anything to do with me being a girl, would it?"_

_"No! No, of course not! I mean no offense; I only..."_

She remembered going to Caster's temple to save Sakura, Saber staying behind to fight Assassin.

_"Just...be careful, okay?"_

_"You take care as well."_

She remembered their date and their fight on the bridge.

_"I'm not the one trying to erase myself from history!"_

_"No, you're merely a hapless child who does not value her own life."_

She remembered their encounter with Gilgamesh.

 _"Your_ virginity _has been threatened, and all you can worry about is—"_

 _"It's because_ I love you _, you idiot!"_

She remembered kissing him and feeling happy, almost deliriously so, when he kissed her back.

_"Shira,_ _you know what I must do. And I know that you could find someone...closer to home."_

_"I don't want someone closer to home. I want you."_

She remembered her joy being crushed in the face of his rejection.

_"But...but...I thought..."_

_"You thought what?"_

She remembered Kotomine offering him the Grail if he killed her, and her amazement at his answer.

_"What Shira can offer me is far more desirable than what the Grail can."_

She remembered walking with him to Ryudou Temple, leaving him to fight Gilgamesh while she confronted Kotomine, making the painful decision to let him go...and his last words to her.

_"I love you, Shira."_

She sharply gasped in her sleep. Her heart was pounding, thudding against her chest, beating faster and faster—

And then it fell silent.

The image of Saber smiling as the sun rose faded into darkness as life fled from seventy-six-year-old Shira Emiya.

* * *

The green grass was soft beneath her feet, the slight breeze was pleasantly warm, and the sun was shining brightly in the clear, flawless sky.

But Shira—young and red-haired again—only briefly scanned her beautiful surroundings before she spotted a figure in the distance.

An achingly familiar figure.

 _Saber!_ She hurried forward without a second thought, a sound somewhere between a laugh and a sob tearing from her throat. She saw him turn around, his eyes widen in astonishment, and his shock give way to joy as he ran towards her.

They were in each other's arms in seconds, and when he leaned down to kiss her, there was nothing hesitant about it. He kissed her fervently, intensely, and her mouth molded against his in equal passion. Their bodies pressed together, his hands sliding to her waist, her arms wrapping around his neck in an effort to deepen the kiss, all their senses going into overdrive as they eagerly sought to make up for lost time.

After so many years of fighting, searching, and hoping, Shira's reward was to spend all of eternity with her beloved Saber. Nothing could be more perfect.

He broke off the kiss, brilliant turquoise meeting warm chocolate, and neither of them resisted smiling.

"Where have you been all my life?" she asked, only half serious.

He gently stroked her cheek. "Waiting for you."


	27. Good Epilogue: Dawn of a New Life

Shira counted off the days in her head.

Six weeks, a month and a half, forty-two days—no matter how it was worded, that was how long it had been since the Holy Grail War concluded. Peace had returned to Fuyuki City: the news on TV no longer had any mysterious "accidents" to report, repairs on buildings that had taken collateral damage during the War were either complete or still going on, and life had, for all intents and purposes, gone back to normal.

Well, not quite normal. For the past several weeks, Shira had thrown herself into her daily routine in an attempt to distract herself from dwelling on Saber's departure, but it hadn't worked nearly as well as she'd hoped. Whether she was cooking, doing chores, attending school, or practicing magecraft, the thought of her former Servant would appear in her mind, and with it came a fresh wave of pain threatening to consume her.

Her grief was a battle she was slowly but surely losing. These days, she felt almost like a machine, mechanically going through her life without any real enjoyment, and no amount of forced smiles and empty assurances to Taiga, Ilya, Rin, and Sakura that she was fine could fill the void in her heart that Saber had left behind.

And that was during the day—the nights were so much worse. Shira's dreams were haunted with nightmarish visions of Saber disappearing, Saber bloodied and beaten, Saber being killed. She'd already lost count of how many times she had woken up in the middle of the night, screaming his name.

 _How long will this go on?_ Shira wondered at present, staring sightlessly up at her bedroom's ceiling, not daring to fall asleep. How long would she have to live with the agony she felt over Saber's disappearance combined with the knowledge that he wasn't coming back? Would there come a time where she'd just...shut down? Go crazy? Or would she wake up one morning to find that she didn't miss him so much anymore?

She just didn't know.

The sound of the doorbell's chime broke Shira out of her thoughts. She quickly sat up in her futon, startled, then groaned as the doorbell rang again. There was only one person she knew who'd be insane enough to come visit her at this hour—Taiga. She must have gotten into yet _another_ fight with Ilya (who had been staying with Shira's brown-haired guardian ever since the Grail War ended instead of going back to the old Einzbern Castle) and come over to vent.

Frustration replaced Shira's melancholy as she got up and threw a robe on over her short, sleeveless nightgown before stalking out of her room and down the hall, already prepared for what to say when she chewed Taiga out.

She reached the front door and shoved it open. "Fuji-nee, if you've come to complain about Ilya, can't you—"

Shira suddenly cut herself off with a gasp as she realized who she was talking to, and it definitely wasn't Taiga.

Tousled blond hair. Blue-green eyes. Thin, lean frame. The clothes were different—red shirt, black long coat, and matching black pants—yet there was no doubt about who the young man was.

But...it just wasn't possible.

It wasn't possible that _he_ was standing before her, dropping the suitcase he'd been carrying as he flinched back and held up his hands defensively. It wasn't possible that _he_ was staring at her, the initial joy in his eyes slowly giving way to unease. It wasn't possible that _his_ hands were lowering to his sides, a small, tentative smile forming on his face.

Shira knew she had to be dreaming. Because _this wasn't possible_.

The seconds crawled by in silence. The being that looked so much like Saber did not vanish. No one—not Berserker, Rider, Assassin, Gilgamesh, or anyone else—appeared out of nowhere to cut him down. Shira's heart raced as she continued staring at him, the irrational part of her brain urging her to consider the possibility that this wasn't a dream. After all, even in her most vivid nighttime visions, Saber had never looked so solid, like she could touch him and not have her fingers pass through him. His eyes had never looked so bright and raw with emotion he was fighting to contain.

"Hello, Shira."

And his voice had certainly never sounded so beautiful.

Those two words snapped the redhead from her stupor. She tried to say Saber's name, but only a dry, choked sob escaped from her mouth, and she flung herself into his arms and burst into tears.

"You're real...you're real, you're real, you're real, you're _real_!" she cried as she desperately clutched at him. She felt him place one hand at the back of her head while the other rubbed slow, soothing circles on her back, and she held him more tightly. She didn't know how long they stayed in each other's embrace, her weeping into his chest and him whispering comforting nothings into her ear, but eventually, his hands made their way to her hips and she lifted her tear-stained face to look up at him.

"How...how are you alive?" she asked, breathless with amazement. "How did you come back?"

Saber smiled as he untangled himself from Shira's grasp and picked up his suitcase. "I can explain, but shall we go inside first?"

Shira mumbled out an agreement, and she and Saber went into the estate and headed to the living room. She sat on the floor while he dropped the suitcase again, kneeling down to unzip it.

"Remember this?" Saber presented the all too familiar blue and golden scabbard to Shira.

"Avalon..." Her lips parted slightly in shock as she took Excalibur's scabbard in her hands. She examined it momentarily before returning her gaze to Saber. "But what does it have to do with you being back?"

"Everything," Saber answered simply. "When I destroyed the Holy Grail, I was transported back to my time. I had returned to that forest, back to my wounded body, fully expecting to die...but I did not." He spared a quick glance at the scabbard. "Before the final battle, you returned Avalon to me, and it was taken back with me when I disappeared from this world. It was shortly after I woke up to find myself miraculously alive that I discovered the scabbard and realized what must have happened."

A moment passed in silence as Shira took in Saber's words. Her astonishment over his incredible return was slowly replaced with euphoria. The pain of the past six weeks was already fading from her mind like a half forgotten memory. Just when she was thinking that she'd never see Saber again, he had come back to her. He was here—he was alive, truly _alive_ —and that was all that mattered.

Shira set Avalon aside, grinning as she crawled over to Saber and wrapped her arms around him again. She leaned her head against his chest while he hugged her back, enjoying the steady rhythm of his heart.

Saber's fingers ran through her hair, and she felt rather than heard him let out a sigh. "I have missed you, Shira. It has been so long..."

"I know," she said quietly. "It's only been over a month, but it feels like it's been forever."

"Actually..." he hesitated, "for me, it has been fifteen hundred years."

Shira's eyes, which had closed due to the lull of Saber's heartbeat, snapped open at once.

"What?!" she exclaimed, pulling back from the hug to stare at him, appalled. "Fifteen hundred _years_? Please tell me you're joking."

"I'm afraid to say I am telling you the truth," Saber said seriously. "Avalon may have saved me from death, but I was still in my era while you were in your own. If I wished to see you again, my only option was to wait out the centuries with Avalon in my possession."

Shira bit her lower lip, looking down at the floor. Fifteen centuries—Saber had to spend _fifteen centuries_ without her. The six weeks she had spent mourning him were nothing compared to that.

She let out a shaky laugh. "So, for you, it really has been forever."

"Indeed it has," Saber answered.

Her gaze drifted back to him, and she frowned as a thought occurred to her. "Saber...before you left, you said you loved me, but..."

"What is it, Shira?" Saber prompted when she didn't continue.

"It's just...fifteen hundred years is a _very_ long time, and...well, a lot can change...Um..." She paused awkwardly, looking down again. "Your feelings for me...they really haven't changed?"

It wasn't a wholly unreasonable question, was it? Sure, Shira's love for Saber was as strong as ever, but their separation had only been a month and a half for her, while for him, it had been well over a millennium. Feelings would inevitably cool during such a long period, if they hadn't died completely (but she didn't bother to entertain the latter possibility—why would he have arrived at her house in the middle of the night if he didn't still care at least a little about her?), so could she really expect him to remain so devoted to her centuries before she was even born?

"Of course not. Why ever would you ask me _that_?"

Saber's reply was so immediate, so sharp, that it caused Shira's head to shoot up. Incredulous, she opened her mouth to speak, but he leaned forward to put a finger to her lips, his brows furrowed.

"Yes, fifteen centuries is a long time, but I find that to be quite irrelevant. I don't care how long I had to wait—I would gladly do it all again if, in the end, I knew we would be reunited."

His finger lowered from her lips, his face still stern. "When I said I loved you, Shira, it was not a lie, nor said in jest. From the moment I thought I was to die in that forest, I wanted nothing more than to be with you, and that wish _never_ changed in the last fifteen hundred years. Now that my wish has been fulfilled, we have our whole lives to be together."

It was at that moment that Saber stopped talking, and his severe expression faded. "That is..." he added, softening his voice and looking as uneasy as he'd been when Shira had practically thrown the front door open, "if you will have me."

More silence followed. The redhead, who had mutely stared at him during his heated speech, now felt her lips quivering upward. "' _If_ you will have me,' he says." She chuckled as a full-fledged grin crossed her face. "Let me put your doubts to rest."

And with that, Shira moved closer to Saber, put her hands on his chest, and kissed him fully on the mouth. He responded quickly, surprising her with his fervor as he kissed her back. From there, it was all taste, touch, and even sound as their lips reacquainted with one another: his mouth opening for hers, their tongues gliding together, both gasping and shivering as their hands explored each other's bodies.

The kiss ended much too soon for Shira's liking. At some point, she had ended up in Saber's lap, her arms around his neck, his hands on her waist, and both panting as they took a moment to catch their breath.

"Shira..." Saber gazed at her as if spellbound.

"Did that convince you?" she asked, a teasing glint in her eyes.

A small smile graced his features. "You are quite persuasive, I admit." His smile faded. "But it is late; we should be turning in."

"Ah, right." With some reluctance, Shira removed her arms from Saber and got off his lap. She stood up as he went to return Avalon to his suitcase.

"I put your futon up after you left," she told him. "If you want, I can get it back out. Or you could always—wait, no, never mind."

Saber got to his feet after zipping up the suitcase, turning to see Shira nervously playing with her hands and staring at the ground.

"Is something wrong?" he questioned.

She looked up at the sound of his voice, feeling heat rush to her face. "No, no, nothing's wrong. I was just thinking that maybe...maybe you could..." Her voice trailed off as she thought of the most subtle way she could say it. But all notion of subtlety seemed to have deserted her, and she decided the best course of action was to just be blunt.

"Sleep with me."

Saber's eyes widened significantly, but Shira proceeded to ramble on before he could do anything more.

"No, listen—I'm not talking about having sex, we can hold that off for as long as you want, I just mean that you could sleep in my bed with me, at least for tonight. It's just...you've been gone all these weeks and now you're back and I don't want you out of my sight and...and..."

The stream of words coming out of Shira's mouth came to a premature end, and she once again stared at the floor, her insides churning with embarrassment as she waited for Saber's response.

"Shira?"

"Yes, Saber?" She lifted her gaze to him.

He smiled, and as he gestured to the door, all he said was, "Lead the way."

* * *

A few minutes later, they were lying beneath the covers of her futon. She had taken off her robe, he had removed his coat, and they were now on their sides facing each other. Neither of them spoke as they gazed at one another, their smiles saying more than words ever could.

The current mood was one of contentment, quite unlike the passion that had seized them during their kiss earlier. Both were satisfied to simply bask in each other's presence, in the knowledge that they were together again, something they hadn't believed possible during what should have been their final encounter.

At last, Shira Emiya spoke. "Promise you'll be still here when I wake up?"

Arthur Pendragon took hold of her hand, which was resting near her head. "I promise."

She fell asleep shortly afterward, and for the first time in weeks, she had no nightmares, only dreams of a bright future with the man lying beside her.


End file.
